Metropolitan, on Hulu

Whit Stillman's first film, Metropolitan, has, over the last two years, become one of my favorite movies of all time. It's a talky, beautifully photographed film set in the privileged world of debutantes and old-money bourgeoisie. Pulling from Jane Austen, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and the social conservative philosophies of Russell Kirk, Stillman created an intelligent film that rests comfortably under the radar (despite being nominated for an Oscar in 1990).

Metropolitan arrived amidst the brilliant frenzy of independent filmmaking in the early '90s. While Stillman's film is on the more conservative side of the spectrum from Spike Lee, Kevin Smith, and Quentin Tarantino, his film is no less influential. The precociousness of the characters (who all seem to be about the age of college freshman, despite talking like Victorian-era social critics), and the excessively lavish world that they inhabit, feel like a precursor to Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums. And for as high art as the film seem, its pacing is somewhat vaudevillian, with the characters coming together for a quick one-liner before a jump-cut switches to another beat and another joke. It's a film that offers many things on many levels, from the absurd lifestyles that these children inhabit, to the core beliefs of traditionalism expressed by the various characters.

The film ultimately connects with me, at this time in my life (just out of college), because of its message of growing up. This group of people, who have been getting together each year to attend these debutante functions, are reaching the age where they need to expand, grow, and move apart. They are moving ahead, prudently, away from their teenage clicks and becoming individuals.

I started writing this blog entry simply to spread the word that the film is available for free, online at Hulu.com, but I sort of forgot that part until now. Metropolitan isn't for everyone, and requires a certain bit of patience, since it is just a bunch of kids sitting around for 3/4 the film. It's great to see that NBC/Universal and whomever else owns Hulu thought it would be good to include the film in their free online catalogue. You can find the film here.