B Movies Blog

Hello, Movie Mavens! Welcome back to the B Movies Blog. Today, we’re popping Bo Burnham’s Inside into the ol’ VCR. 

ALRIGHT, ALRIGHT. I know what you’re all thinking. 

“But Baillee, you’ve written 30+ pages about Inside.” 

My friends, I totally hear you. I’m not here today to talk about the color scheme of Bo’s clothing nor am I here to break down Inside bit by bit. Hell, I’m not even here to talk about The Inside Outtakes. I’m here to briefly talk about why Inside is so important to me (and why I got a quote from the special tattooed). 

Let’s flashback to May 30, 2021 when Inside was released. I actually waited several days to watch this special. I’d been waiting for a new Bo Burnham special so that I could savor every second. 

Mental health-wise, I wasn’t in a very good spot. I was extremely unhappy with where I was in life, and my eardrum had decided to spontaneously rupture. My mom had to extend her visit to help me around the house. I felt stuck and helpless, and I was straight up not having a good time, bro. 

Then, I watched Inside. I’d never seen such relatable content. From writing to mental health issues, Bo Burnham articulated how I felt in ways I’d never been able to fully capture. That’s why Inside is so important to me. 

As someone who has clinical depression and anxiety, and is creatively brained to her core, I get it. I obviously know that this is a special, and Bo’s a phenomenal writer/director/actor. I GET IT. The performance still doesn’t take away how it made me feel. That’s the real meaning of pop culture, right?

It doesn’t matter that it’s pretend; it’s how the media makes us feel. This brings us to the why. 

Why is the first piece I wrote about Inside so special to me?

To recap, I wasn’t in a good headspace. To be fully transparent, I was doubting myself as a writer. I’ve been writing my entire life, and it’s one of the few things I’ll openly admit comes naturally to me/that I’m really good at. 

However, I was in a full-on rut. Inside drug me out of my hole by my ankles. I spent hours upon hours watching Bo’s previous two specials. I watched Inside 5-6 more times to cross my t’s and dot my i’s. For the first time in a hot minute, I was passionate about something. 

And, my first piece on Inside got a lot of attention. People I hadn’t spoken to in YEARS were messaging me to compliment my piece. They wanted to talk about the method behind my madness. They wanted to talk about my theories. People wanted to talk about MY writing. 

The first piece I wrote about Inside solidified the talent I thought I had. It not only marked a big shift in my mindset, but in my career. Later that year, I applied to be a Copywriter and used this piece as a writing sample. 

I became more confident in my writing. I stopped caring what people would think about my voice as a writer because I’ve always had a distinct tone. That piece transformed me Inside and out. Hence the tattoo. 

I got a line from Inside tattooed on my left arm because I’m right-handed and can look at it whenever I’m in doubt about my writing (the placement was KP’s idea for this very reason, and it will forever prove she understood me in a way no one else ever will). 

Inside isn’t special to me because of my love of Bo Burnham’s work (I still love you, BB, don’t worry), but because it marks the beginning of me truly believing what everyone around me had been telling me for years. 

Ya girl is a writer, through and through. I’m a “wake up in the middle of the night to write an idea or piece” girlie, and that’s all I know how to be. That leads me to the last point of this piece. 

I’m not saying I won’t ever come back to Inside, but the two year anniversary of my first piece launching seems like the perfect time to say goodbye. We’ve talked about Bo’s clothing, we’ve speculated about what the smile at the end means, and we’ve even joked about me drunkenly sliding into Bo’s DMs to talk about how good Eighth Grade was, which is true, if anyone is wondering. (I’m also almost two years sober, and this only played a tiny part).

I still rewatch Inside, and I still love it very much, but I think I’ve covered everything there is to be said. At least for now. 

Bo, if you’re reading this, please, for the love of God, don’t ever Google my name and any variation of your name or any references from the special. Additionally, don’t ever look through my Instagram, particularly at any posts from the photoshoot I did for my 30th birthday. 

TIA. HAGS. TGIF. 

Inside and The Inside Outtakes are streaming on Netflix. 

You can also read the piece that started it all, Should I Be Writing At A Time Like This?: Inside Bo Burnham’s Latest Masterpiece, over on the Hyperreal Film Club website.