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YMMV / Don Hertzfeldt

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  • Misaimed Fandom: Ah, l'amour. This film has been used by misogynist "pick up artists" to demonstrate how shallow women "really" are, failing to grasp the fact that the animation is meant to parody bitter, angsty misogynist filmmakers who make films about how shallow women "really" are.
  • Squick: Those who have issues watching dental-related pain and blood should definitely give "Wisdom Teeth" a miss.
  • Tear Jerker: Everything will be ok and I am so proud of you both have several moments discussing the nature of life and death, but the one that really hits home was in the second film where Bill has a nightmare where he's lying on his deathbed:
    "He pictures himself having trouble breathing and waking to a room full of concerned faces. He'd been terrified of dying his entire life, and as much as he'd try not to think about it, death was always in the back of Bill's head. Around every corner, and hovering in each horizon. He'd brushed shoulders with death on a few occasions but in his carefree youth, it had almost seemed like an abstract, impossible thing to ever happen to him. But with each passing decade, Bill begin to gauge the time he probably have left and by his forties, which he considered his halfway point at best, he had come to know just one thing: "You will only get older." The next thing you know, you're looking back instead of forward. And now, at the climax of all those years of worries, sleepless nights, and denials, he finally finds himself staring death in the face, surrounded by people he no longer recognizes and feels no closer attachment to than the thousands of relatives that came before. As the sun continues to set, Bill finally came to realize the dumb irony in how he had been waiting for this moment his entire life. This stupid, awkward moment of death that had invaded and distracted so many days with stress and wasted time. If only he could travel back and part some wisdom to his younger self. He lifts an arm to speak but can only inexplicably say: "It smells like dust and moonlight."
    • The Simpsons couch gag he did is largely this or Nightmare Fuel, as it depicts a terrifying future in which the family has been reduced to bizarre, deformed mutants that do nothing but scream catchphrases ("I AM SIMPSAN!") or strange ramblings ("ALL ANIMALS CAN SCREAM") and shill merchandise. However, as Future!Homer looks at his family, he murmurs "I have...memories..." and begins flashing back to episodes of the show that, while still futuristic and bizarrely animated, maintained the characters' love for each other. In one, an armless Marge taps him with her tentacles and says "Still love you, Ho-mar"; in another, the Simpsons are bacteria-like shapes, but still cry "We are happy family!"; and in the final one, strange versions of Homer and Marge stand before a black void and silently say "I will never forget you." The memories end, and Future!Homer is left to stare at the wife and children that he still loves...who can't recognize him anymore.

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