The difference between a super-villain and a bad guy is style. Watching Detention Directed by Joseph Kahn makes it clear that there is a language artists speak with, and it transcends words. In this post, I’d like to draw parallels between Kahn’s cinematic work and his music video work, using the framework of what makes a medium ‘post-cinematic’.

Post-cinema refers to media forms and practices that challenge traditional cinematic structures, usually blurring the lines between film, digital media, and other forms. Through its hyper-stylized aesthetic, fractured narrative, and relentless intertextuality, Detention shows principles of post-cinema while showcasing Kahn’s personal style. 

Further, the film engages with the post-cinematic condition by reflecting on how media saturation impacts identity and experience, one of them being the concept of mediated Reality. The characters live in a world shaped by media consumption, where their identities and actions are deeply influenced by pop culture tropes and digital culture!

Another engagement with this is temporal disruption. The film plays with time in a way that mirrors how digital technologies have altered our perception of linearity—jumping between past, present, and speculative futures with little regard for cohesion. An element of Rodowick’s study of post-cinema is the inclusion of content from digital media or online spaces. Detention is a hypermediated film, loaded with references, aesthetics and pop culture of a digital-native generation:

The film is packed with visual overload :

• fast cuts, 
• split screens
• hyper-stylized transitions that mirror the fragmented, attention-grabbing logic of pop media. 

These techniques echo Kahn’s music video style, where rhythm and spectacle dominate. 

With the similarity in edit and overall style in Detention and music video hits like Bad Blood, …Ready for it? And Look What You Made Me Do (Taylor Swift), we see a stylistic overlap in cinema and music video. This makes a powerful argument for the presence of music videos in post-cinema! 

[Sara Shikooh, 33754059, 4/oct/24]

References:

Rodowick, D. N. 2015, The Virtual Life of Film 

Kahn, J. 2012, Detention 

Kahn J. 2014, Bad Blood

Kahn J. 2017, …Ready for it?, Look What You Made Me Do