Key Change: Rian Johnson on Wagner's 'Das Rheingold'

Key takeaways

Music, especially powerful works like Wagner's 'Das Rheingold', can profoundly influence a creator's emotional understanding and storytelling approach.
The emotional resonance of art often surpasses cleverness; authentic emotional connection is vital for compelling storytelling.
Navigating the cultural and moral complexities of influential art, such as Wagner's anti-Semitism, requires awareness and reflection, especially when drawing inspiration.
Authentic creative inspiration often involves personal and cultural reflection, and moments of emotional truth can redefine a creator's direction.

Summary

Ryan Johnson's Journey into Opera and Music's Influence on Filmmaking

In this section, Ryan Johnson shares his personal journey with opera, starting from childhood when his fascination was initially sparked by seeing La Traviata in Europe. His experience watching Wagner's 'Das Rheingold', especially the powerful overture, profoundly impacted him, influencing his emotional understanding of storytelling. Johnson details how this music inspired his creative process, especially in terms of emotional resonance, and reflects on how his appreciation for Wagner's work aligns with his filmmaking, notably in emotionally charged moments in his movies.

The Power of Music and Emotional Resonance in Creativity

This section explores Johnson's insights into the relationship between music and emotional storytelling. He discusses how his favorite music, like Wagner's 'Das Rheingold', creates intense emotional experiences, and how such music can serve as a writing and creative tool. Johnson compares this to songwriting, emphasizing the imperity of marrying lyrics or melodies with emotional meaning. His reflections reveal that for him, emotional connection surpasses cleverness in storytelling and creative work, guiding both his films and his personal artistic endeavors.

Cultural and Personal Reflections on Wagner and His Work

Johnson candidly addresses the complex cultural legacy of Wagner, highlighting his anti-Semitic beliefs and the problematic history linked to his work. He discusses visiting Wagner's opera house near Bayreuth and confronting these issues, referencing Wagner scholar Alex Ross’s work on the broader cultural impact. The conversation acknowledges the moral and historical complications of appreciating Wagner's compositions, and how Johnson navigates his love for the music with awareness of these darker aspects.

Filmmaking, Inspiration, and the Search for Emotional Truth

This section details Johnson's approach to filmmaking, including the importance of emotional resonance. He recounts his experience working on 'Star Wars: The Last Jedi' and highlights a key moment that reaffirmed his connection to the story and its emotional core. Johnson discusses how personal and cultural stories, like Star Wars, influence his work, and how he seeks to continually find emotional truth in his films, even amid the pressures of clever storytelling or external critique.

Show notes

My guest today is director Rian Johnson, which is exciting for me, because I’ve been a huge fan of his ever since seeing his first feature film, ‘Brick,' in 2006. Since then, he’s made six more feature films, including ‘Looper‘ in 2012; ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi‘ in 2017; the murder mystery ‘Knives Out‘ in 2019; and his most recent movie, another in the 'Knives Out' series, ‘Wake Up Dead Man,‘ which is already out in theaters, and comes to Netflix on December 12. I talked to Rian about a piece of music that had a profound impact on him, which was the overture to ‘Das Rheingold‘ by Richard Wagner.

For more info, visit songexploder.net/rian-johnson.