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James Franco is a poster boy for pretension, particularly if you happen to learn his bad poetry, which reads like traces from r/im14andthisisdeep. Franco, making an attempt to sound profound, as soon as mentioned his poetry is “making an attempt to say one thing along with what’s on the floor” — which, , is virtually the definition of poetry as this article points out. One of many poems within the guide is mainly only a record of Heath Ledger’s roles. One other reads, “My father died in my Jesus yr. He was sixty-three and I used to be thirty-three. He’d managed a couple of issues and so have I. I drive a bus.” The road breaks aren’t at all times the place you’d assume they’d be.
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Shia LaBeouf additionally typically tries to seem deep or clever in what quantities to little greater than publicity stunts. Bear in mind when he wore a paper bag on his head with the phrase “I’m not well-known anymore,” or the time he called his complete life “efficiency artwork”? What about when he ripped off Daniel Clowes for a brief movie, after which tried to show it right into a commentary on plagiarism and inspiration, actually stealing phrases from well-known apologies in his personal apology?
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Then there’s the time he stormed out of an interview after a reasonably innocuous query about intercourse scenes, quoting (with out attribution) soccer participant Eric Cantona, who had as soon as achieved the identical whereas remarking, “When the seagulls observe the trawler, it is as a result of they assume sardines might be thrown into the ocean.” Selling a movie known as Nymphomaniac, a query on intercourse actually didn’t really feel prefer it promoted that reply, and Labeouf’s unusual response felt like an try at showing deep and mental when actually he simply did not really feel like answering a query.
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Orlando Bloom raised eyebrows when he spoke to the Sunday Instances about his morning routine, which included studying a “little bit of Buddhism,” Buddhist chanting, ingesting a mixture of “mind octane oil,” and climbing whereas listening to Nirvana. However the actual kicker got here when he mentioned, “I spend quite a lot of my time dreaming about roles for myself and others — for minorities and girls. I am making an attempt to be a voice for everyone.” It kinda felt like Bloom was making an attempt somewhat too arduous to sound inclusive with out actually doing something to again it up. Oh, and he talked about appreciating the great thing about cows.
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He additionally came off fairly pretentious when he spoke about protecting an excellent head after LOTR and Pirates of the Caribbean fame. “I had this exceptional opening chapter to my profession, for which I used to be solely semi-present. With out my Buddhist apply, I may have simply come off the rails. I have been altering the narrative in my head and really feel that I could be the driving force of my practice. I can set it alight, however I can get the fireplace crew and put it out.”
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I will be the primary to say it: I do not like Brad Pitt. I appreciated him even much less after studying his 2022 GQ profile. In it, he asks the interviewer, “Why the fuck are we right here? What’s past? As a result of I collect that you simply imagine in one thing past…. Do you’re feeling trapped right here, on this physique and on this setting?” The 2 talk about Rilke and Rumi, excessive artwork, and the that means of goals. Afterward, Pitt sends the interviewer an e mail with the sections “Summation, Clarification, and Rumination” to expound on his interview query solutions. There’s additionally some extent the place the 2 are sitting by a fireplace, and Pitt says, “I’m a assassin. I am a lover. I’ve the capability for excellent empathy and I can devolve into pettiness.”
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Truthfully, I do not know if I can say Tilda Swinton is pretentious, as she actually does appear to be that cultured and clever (she’s associated to royalty, in spite of everything) however a few of the quotes from this New Yorker interview she gave are wild, so I am going to allow you to resolve. Her feedback on working with the late director Derek Jarman particularly have been overly mental and mythologizing — she known as the experiences an “apprenticeship” and a “motion,” saying, “One is in mourning much less for the people and extra for the time, for—I’d even go as far as to name it — ‘the motion.'” She additionally gave an extended commentary on class and ruminated on the opportunity of dying in a aircraft crash proper after 9/11, saying, “Nicely, the place else would you quite be than with different folks? What else is there however different folks?”
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Joaquin Phoenix typically comes off as a bit pretentious in how significantly he takes his work, however one second particularly caught followers’ consideration: his Oscars speech after successful Finest Actor for his position in Joker. In it, Phoenix tried to make a grand assertion on world points, however ended up occurring a tangent about cows that type of rendered the entire thing somewhat foolish and flat. “I have been pondering quite a bit about a few of the distressing points that we face collectively. I feel at occasions we really feel, or we’re made to really feel, that we champion totally different causes. However for me, I see commonality,” Phoenix mentioned, mentioning gender inequality, racism, queer rights, Indigenous rights, and animal rights. Whereas his phrases on one group at all times subjugating one other of lesser energy began nobly, they quickly took a flip.
“I feel that we have grow to be very disconnected from the pure world, and many people, what we’re responsible of is an selfish world view — the assumption that we’re the middle of the universe,” he started. Then he went into cows….and synthetic insemination. He wrapped it up by advocating for people to create programs of change and “information one another in the direction of redemption.” Which, positive, however it lacked some specificity, and he’d misplaced the group by then. Whereas once more, his intentions appeared noble, perhaps do not convey up the morality of ingesting milk simply seconds after speaking about large-scale points like racial inequality?
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Russel Model has a ton of various quotes the place he tries to sound deep or good, however finally ends up sounding like he is quoting one thing from a guide he learn. “The phenomena of consciousness, your very presence, the nonetheless, small voice inside you and the apparently exterior world are all proof that God is actual,” he wrote on Fb. He is spoken about the necessity for a “religious revolution” — even writing a guide on it — the “vitality facilities within the physique,” and the way the “self” is synthetic.
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His guide, Revolution, was criticized by The Guardian for being “heavy going, mild on politics and, in locations, past parody.” Framing himself as an knowledgeable on spirituality, politics, identification, and fact won’t be pretentious posturing if Model had the credentials to again it up…however Model is maybe finest identified for conspiracy theories, a brief marriage to Katy Perry, and his sexual assault allegations (he has pled “not responsible”). Oh, and for somebody who talks a lot about politics, he doesn’t even vote.
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Jim Carrey’s interview with Rüdiger Sturm is stuffed with faux-deep tidbits like this, the place he mentioned the shortage of self. “There is no such thing as a particular person right here. There are solely energies,” he mentioned. “If you wish to speak scientifically, break it right down to a cluster of tetrahedrons that one way or the other imagine they’re a factor.” He continued, “However they’re concepts — simply concepts. Jim Carrey was an thought my mother and father gave me. Irish-Scottish-French was an thought I used to be given. Canadian was an concept that I used to be given. I had a hockey staff and a faith and all of this stuff that cobble collectively into this type of Frankenstein monster, this illustration. It is like an avatar. These are all of the issues I’m. You aren’t an actor, or a lawyer. Nobody is a lawyer. There are legal professionals, regulation is practiced, however nobody is a lawyer.”
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Perhaps he is only a New Age type of man — however he additionally appears to behave above those that aren’t as “enlightened.” Whereas attending a NYFW Icons get together, he slammed the entire occasion with a really “higher than this” perspective, saying, “I needed to search out probably the most meaningless factor that I may come to and be a part of, and right here I’m.” Talking in regards to the theme, he mentioned, “Celebrating icons? That’s simply absolutely the, lowest-aiming chance that we may give you.” He continued, “I do not imagine in personalities. I imagine that peace lies past persona, past invention and disguise, past the crimson ‘S’ that you simply put on in your chest that makes bullets bounce off. I imagine we’re a subject of vitality dancing for itself. And I do not care.”
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Donald Glover as soon as compared himself to Jesus, after saying that there was nothing he is unhealthy at. “Most likely simply folks. Individuals do not prefer to be studied, or bested. I am high quality with it. I do not actually like folks that a lot. Individuals settle for me now as a result of I’ve energy, however they nonetheless assume, ‘Oh, he thinks he’s the golden flower of the Black group, thinks he’s so totally different.’ However I’m, although!”
He then mentioned, “I really feel like Jesus. I do really feel chosen. My battle is to make use of my humanity to create a basic work — however I do not know if humanity is value it, or if we will make it. I do not know if there’s a lot time left.” Whereas Glover is undeniably gifted, the Jesus comparability went a bit far — previous pretension and straight right into a God complicated.
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It is a small one, however it actually irks me. Chatting with THE EDIT by Web-a-Porter, Kate Winslet as soon as mentioned she stop remedy as a result of she was smarter than her therapist. “I attempted remedy as soon as and thought, ‘Oh God, I may outsmart you, goodbye.’ So I will not trouble with that once more,” she told the interviewer.
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In one other smaller second, Jennifer Garner as soon as tried to make herself look good and Conan look dumb by correcting him on his personal present…just for Conan to show that he was proper all alongside.
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Cole Sprouse has cultivated an…attention-grabbing persona over time, and he is actually had his r/im14andthisisdeep cringe-worthy moments. I’ll always remember him being tremendous bizarre on Tumblr, going viral, then calling the complete factor a “social experiment” in a really pretentious publish.
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A more moderen second got here when he appeared on the podcast Name Her Daddy final yr. Followers were quick to cringe at his cigarette smoking inside, in addition to the way in which he held the cigarette, tweeting issues like, “he provides me the ick” and “It is giving wealthy white child pretending to be a tortured artist.” His ruminations on relationships did not a lot assist, although actually, it was the final vibe that irked folks extra.
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And eventually, we’ll finish with my favourite…the time that Woody Allen was tremendous pretentious whereas interviewing Twiggy and tried to make her look dumb. Twiggy — then an adolescent — efficiently flipped the script and uncovered Allen for not having the ability to reply the identical query he’d posed her. To which I say: ICON! (Sure, the identical variety Jim Carrey hates.)