Via Chicago to Paris

This week I had the opportunity to watch the 2002 Wilco documentary I Am Trying to Break Your Heart (thanks, Bill). It's must viewing for any Wilco fan, and an artful piece of filmmaking in its own right. Among the nice things in it is this opening title sequence featuring shots of the Chicago skyline. On the DVD commentary director Sam Jones said he was trying to capture the experience he had the first time Wilco lead singer/songwriter Jeff Tweedy took him for a drive along Lake Shore Drive. Jones shot most of this sequence by simply holding his camera out the window into the frigid Chicago air. And yes, that's SpongeBob dangling from Tweedy's rear view mirror.




The opening of IATTBYH reminded me of the famous opening sequence to The 400 Blows, François Truffaut's love letter to Paris. He also shot it from a moving car, and the similarities in style and mood are striking. I have no idea if Jones was paying homage to Truffaut. Maybe he'll write in and let us know.