What makesEuphoriaso intoxicating is not only the teenage melodrama, or the love/hate relationships you forge with the characters, but it’s also largely due to the show’s cinematography. It’s beautiful and enchanting aesthetically and is exactly the kind of intersection between film and TV that defines theNetflixera. DirectorSam Levinsonhad an undeniable vision for the show, and cinematographerMarcell Révexecuted the emotional volatility he was aiming for with a kind of dazzling allure that takes you all the way down the rabbit hole and into the High School fever dream.
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AlthoughEuphoria’s aesthetic is so unique and recognizable, its brilliance is undeniably linked to the show’s use of intertextuality and allusions to classic films as cultural reference points. In the modern world where no art is truly original, theEuphoriacreators use this to their advantage, sprinkling classic film homage’s throughout to help convey certain themes and emotions that the audience can relate to. Season two was filled with such references, from LQBTQI+ classics toDisneyprincess originals,Euphorialends a nod to its most influential pieces of cinematic art.
Episode four ofEuphoria’sseason two opens with a surreal montage of Rue (Zendaya) and Jules (Hunter Schafer) portraying different pieces of art and cinema, depicting love in various capacities. The ‘Rules’ relationship has been tumultuous, with most of the first season revolving around a will-they-won’t-they storyline in which the two are in love with each other, but neither knows about the other. Mid-season two sees the teenage relationship finally in a place of stillness, if only for an episode.
Jerry Zucker’s romance fantasy thrillerGhostwas theultimate love story of 1990, and the famous pottery scene with Sam (Patrick Swayze) nestled behind Molly (Demi Moore) caressing clay on a pottery wheel while The Righteous Brothers “Unchained Melody” plays make it one of the most sensual and intimate portrayals of love ever seen on the big screen. It makes sense for Rue and Jules to then take on these parts. They are at their most intimate and have finally reached a state of contentment (albeit, contentment based on false pretenses). In high school, these kinds of first love’s truly do feel like the movies, andLevinsonis depicting the intensity and grandeur of this for the two involved.
James Cameron’s 1997Titanichas stood the test of time as one of the most iconic love stories ever brought to cinema. It remained the highest-grossing film of all time until Cameron’sAvatarsurpassed it in 2010. Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) are the Romeo and Juliet of the 20th Century, and their love has been referenced, parodied, discussed, criticized, and revered as a cultural checkpoint since the movie’s release. The scene in which Jack is holding Rose at the head of the ship with her arms out as she proclaims “I’m flying, Jack,” has held its place in pop culture throughout the years, and remains a prominent symbol of true love.
Seeing Rue and Jules as Jack and Rose feels like an intentional link to season one’s Romeo and Juliet crux. The Rules relationship is being cemented in pop culture as another of the iconic romance stories, in a less hetero-normative, more relevant love this generation can connect to. By portraying these characters in the Titanic scene, with Rue holding Jules as they sail against a deep orange sunset, Levinson is providing a cultural reference point for you to understand the current emotional status of these characters.
‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarves’
Disney’s first-ever full-length animated feature film,Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, released in 1937 was the world’s first introduction to the Disney princess, and her charming prince, as we know and love today. After being poisoned by her evil step-mother, Snow White lays in a glass coffin in the middle of the woods, forced into an eternal slumber only to be broken by true love’s kiss. Her prince finds her a year later, and feeling deeply saddened, decides to lean in and kiss her. The princess awakens and, the two live happily ever after.
Using Snow White in this montage is a delectable moment of tone change. The snippet is animated and is a sweet, pure indication of love’s power to save and revive. Jules lies on a pillow of flowers, dressed as Snow White. She looks angelic while Rue rides in as the Prince, leans over, and (after reading a note offering consent) kisses her princess, awakening her. Jules is no princess, and Rue is definitely not a prince, but this parallel offers a precious indication of how the two view their love for each other.
‘Brokeback Mountain’
Ang Lee’s 2006 neo-Western romantic dramaBrokeback Mountainis hailed as an incredibly important piece of Queer cinema. Two American cowboys, Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Ennis (Heath Ledger), develop a romantic relationship while working together as shepherds, and the film explores the complexity of their relationship over the decades to come, as they yearn to be together but cannot, due to socio-political contexts of the time and place.
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Brokeback Mountain is the only queer reference used in the Rules montage, and its importance cannot be understated. Rue and Jules, dressed as the young cowboys, embrace at a campsite, and “hit the hay” together - a brief biff in a tent followed by a moment of passion as they fall into each other. Rue and Jules are a queer couple, with Jules as a trans-woman being one of many themes of her character development, but the couple’s sexuality is not a main point of contention or focus in the plot. In fact, it is barely brought to attention at all. Reflecting the social contexts of the time, it’s an interesting comparison of the two scenes, and the juxtaposition between Rue and Jules' freedom, with Jack and Ennis' lack thereof.
‘Midsommar’
Although Levinson has explained that he drew inspiration for the imagery of Cassie against the flowers from Mexican murals, it would be amiss to not mention fan theories of its similitude toAri Aster’sMidsommar. The 2019 psychological horror follows Dani (Florence Pugh) on a strange and twisted journey to Sweden with her boyfriend following the traumatic deaths of her sister and parents. It’s an emotionally taxing experienceexploring themes of grief, suffering, and rebirth.
In episode four of Euphoria’s second season, Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) is seen spiraling into a chaotic meltdown as she fears she is losing the man she loves. Cassie is a character who embodies the female condition of completely surrendering your sense of self for others, much like Dani inMidsommar. Towards the end of the episode, after Cassie has self-sabotaged her way to an emotionally unstable state, she is seen in a heavenly portrait among hanging flowers. As the camera slowly pans out, Cassie is crying soft tears. Fans were quick to theorize the resemblance this scene has to Dani’s descent inMidsommarwhen she is at her most emotionally vulnerable, and something finally switches inside her. The two female characters are suffering, and have always searched outward for solace, perhaps like Dani at this moment, Cassie is finally going to start looking inward.
Another fan theory following Cassie’s demise is the similarities between her emotional distress to that ofCarrie(Sissy Spacek) in the 1977 horror film of the same name. Carrie is a 16-year-old outcast. She is voted prom queen and finally feels accepted by her peers, if only for a brief moment. It turns out to be a sick prank, and she is deeply humiliated, spiraling emotionally into a deep state of chaos.
Cassie’s instability and overall mentality in episode seven of season two undeniably mirrors that of Carrie’s emotional state. Cassie thinks by having Nate (Jacob Elordi) she had finally achieved something worthy, and after feeling completely humiliated by Lexi (Maude Apatow) and her portrayal of Cassie and Nate in her play, spiral’s into desperation and revenge. Cassie’s heavy breathing through the glass window evokes an eerily familiar sense of madness as Carrie does throughout the film.
‘Goodfellas’
Season 2 as a whole has been dubbed “Goodfellas-esque,” but in particular, this style of storytelling is strongly utilized in the very first episode. Telling the origin story of fan-favorite Fezco (Angus Cloud); how his drug dealing grandma saved him from his abusive father and lead him into the life he now leads.
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The shooting style, aesthetic, and tone of this episode are highly reminiscent ofMartin Scorsese’s 1990 crime drama. The use of voiceover, the camera movement, the sketchy backstory, the fourth-wall breaks — it’s all a nod to the blood-soaked gangster film. Levinson also paid homage to the film in episode five, with Rue’s breakdown after Jules and her mother get rid of her suitcase of drugs, paralleling Henry’s (Ray Liotta) outburst when Karen (Lorraine Bracco) flushes his drugs down a toilet.
‘The Neon Demon’
One ofEuphoria’s defining features is the use of color. Scenes are drenched in neon hues of purple, red, blue — it’s vibrant and emotive. Rév and Levinson created this color scheme to convey emotional states and to visually depict how characters are reacting to their environments. Blue represents feelings of anxiety, or a certain calmness, a lack of feeling, while red is used to represent intense feelings of anger and passion.
Much ofEuphoria’s aesthetic can be compared toNicolas Winding Refn’s2016 psychological thriller,The Neon Demon. The Neon Demonfollows 16-year-old Jesse (Elle Fanning) as she moves to LA to chase a modeling career, and is concurrently exposed to the dark realities of the fashion industry.Euphoriauses the same concepts of color, makeup and light explored inThe Neon Demonas a mode to express the fleeting and vast emotions of teenagers.
‘Enter the Void’
ThroughoutEuphoria, the camera is used as a character of its own; a ghost in the background watching events unfold. This is amplified in Season 2 and mirrors the filming style ofGaspar Noé’s2009 experimental art filmEnter the Void.Enter the Voidfollows the out-of-body experience of an American drug dealer, Oscar (Nathaniel Brown) after being shot by police in a Tokyo nightclub.
The film is a neon-drenched psychedelic experience, andEuphoriadelves into parallel themes explored in it, including drug use, life, and death, as well as drawing inspiration from its filming style. Levinson has explained how the use of the camera as a person of its own, an ethereal being watching for itself, helps to create an ‘otherworld’ where Rue escapes to when she is high.
‘Game of Thrones’
The second episode of Season 2 sees intertextuality used more as a form of parody. Kat (Barbie Ferreira) is bored with her relationship and is beginning to have strong doubts. Levinson uses a fun fantasy sequence in which Kat’s boyfriend Ethan (Austin Abrams) is stabbed in the heart by aGame of Thronestype warrior to demonstrate Kat’s frustration.
Not only does this use of parody elicit humor and provide a reference point for the kind of man Kat yearns for, but it is also an interesting reversal of gender dynamics.Game of Thronesas a series often depicts women as a prop for violence, victims of cruel and unnecessary brutality. By inserting a comical character as the epitome of male strength and power into Kat’s fantasy, the narrative, and power is being shifted to Kat.
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