New Film ‘Columbus’ Is a Character Study Through a Modernist Lens
Set in an Indiana town known for its midcentury architecture, the film provides a thoughtful look at design and life
Camille LeFevre
September 27, 2017
Houzz Contributor. Arts journalist specializing in design and architecture. Former editor of Architecture Minnesota, editor of Innovative Design Quarterly, contributor to Midwest Home and HomeDish blog, contributor to Architect's Newspaper and author of the monograph Charles R. Stinson: Compositions in Nature. Have also written for Architect, ICON and Architectural Record. On my bucket list: Modernism Week in Palm Springs; happy to have done Modernism Week in Phoenix in 2017!! More at camillelefevre.org
Houzz Contributor. Arts journalist specializing in design and architecture. Former... More
In the independent film Columbus, directed by visual artist and videographer Kogonada, the modernist architecture of Columbus, Indiana, is the aesthetic lens through which the protagonists in this quiet, heartfelt film make the decision that will carry them into new lives. The film hit theaters nationwide Aug. 4, after debuting at this year’s Sundance Film Festival.
Photos by Elisha Christian except where noted
A renowned architecture scholar falls suddenly ill during a speaking tour. Jin (John Cho), his son, travels to the Midwestern town of Columbus and finds himself adrift with conflicting feelings about his father until he meets a young woman, Casey (Haley Lu Richardson), who is a devoted architecture enthusiast.
A renowned architecture scholar falls suddenly ill during a speaking tour. Jin (John Cho), his son, travels to the Midwestern town of Columbus and finds himself adrift with conflicting feelings about his father until he meets a young woman, Casey (Haley Lu Richardson), who is a devoted architecture enthusiast.
Photo from the Indianapolis Museum of Art
The film opens quietly, as a fashionably dressed woman roams through the town’s famed Miller House, designed by Eero Saarinen, calling out for her companion. The camera pans across the midcentury home’s breathtaking interiors: the gorgeous furniture; floor-to-ceiling bookcases arrayed in glass, wood and color; the sunken conversation pit.
The house was commissioned by industrialist and philanthropist J. Irwin Miller and his wife, Xenia Simons Miller, in 1953. According to the Miller House and Garden website, the house “expands upon an architectural tradition developed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe — epitomizing the international Modernist aesthetic — with an open and flowing layout, flat roof and stone and glass walls. The rooms, configured beneath a grid pattern of skylights supported by cruciform steel columns, are filled with textiles that feature strong colors and playful patterns.”
The film opens quietly, as a fashionably dressed woman roams through the town’s famed Miller House, designed by Eero Saarinen, calling out for her companion. The camera pans across the midcentury home’s breathtaking interiors: the gorgeous furniture; floor-to-ceiling bookcases arrayed in glass, wood and color; the sunken conversation pit.
The house was commissioned by industrialist and philanthropist J. Irwin Miller and his wife, Xenia Simons Miller, in 1953. According to the Miller House and Garden website, the house “expands upon an architectural tradition developed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe — epitomizing the international Modernist aesthetic — with an open and flowing layout, flat roof and stone and glass walls. The rooms, configured beneath a grid pattern of skylights supported by cruciform steel columns, are filled with textiles that feature strong colors and playful patterns.”
Smart, profound and unflinching, the film examines a period of pivotal change in the lives of Casey and Jin through the lens of the city’s midcentury architecture, including the North Christian Church by Eero Saarinen, built in 1964.
In many of the scenes, the action takes place off to the side of the screen or even off-camera, while the lens is fixed firmly on a meticulously designed landscape, such as the hallway in Casey’s home, the glassware in the Miller House, the sculpted ceiling of the North Christian Church, or Jin’s room at the Inn at Irwin Gardens (the childhood home of J. Irwin Miller), shown here.
The viewer’s attention is focused on space and place, detail and materiality, form and symbolism as the protagonists’ pasts, and present dilemmas, are slowly revealed. Here, in one of the film’s closing scenes, Casey is back in the Miller House kitchen, where a blue mosaic tile wall, colorful glassware, floor-to-ceiling windows and floating kitchen cabinets convey a sense of possibility.
The film ends back in the Miller House, where Jin contemplates the gardens designed by landscape architect Dan Kiley as he considers staying in Columbus to wait out his father’s death or recovery. Kiley’s landscape plan divided the garden into several outdoor rooms that respond to the house’s geometric order.
In the film, design is layered into the overlapping narratives. The acting is as quietly efficient as the modernist architecture. The emotions are as honest as the midcentury materials and clean design. The movie itself is one to be savored.
More
‘The Intern’: Nancy Meyers on Bringing Movie Interiors to Life
Silver Screen to Room: Color Palettes Inspired by ‘La La Land’
Roots of Style: Midcentury Modern Design
In the film, design is layered into the overlapping narratives. The acting is as quietly efficient as the modernist architecture. The emotions are as honest as the midcentury materials and clean design. The movie itself is one to be savored.
More
‘The Intern’: Nancy Meyers on Bringing Movie Interiors to Life
Silver Screen to Room: Color Palettes Inspired by ‘La La Land’
Roots of Style: Midcentury Modern Design
Our Cabinetry and Woodworking Business is located in Plain City, OH. We specialize in custom cabinetry and custom... Read More
Related Products
Related Stories
Most Popular
8 Things Successful Architects and Designers Do
Good architects tell a story and engage the senses. They understand the rules — and know when to break them
Full Story
Architecture
This Frank Lloyd Wright Home Is a Model of Universal Design
The famed architect’s Laurent House, years ahead of its time, showed how accessible design could have style and function
Full Story
Modern Architecture
Houzz Tour: Wild Cats Roam This Amazing Modern Prairie House
Stunning architecture competes for attention with fabulous felines in an eye-popping home near Oklahoma City
Full Story
Storage
7 Eye-Catching Custom Storage Ideas
Need more space to stash your stuff? Get inspired by these clever ideas for built-in storage
Full Story
Most Popular
A Few Words on the Power of Simplicity
An architect considers a pared-down approach to modern home design
Full Story
World of Design
Winning Designs: The Best New Houses in Australia
By Joanna Tovia
The 2018 Houses Awards honor a new batch of creative designs in Australia’s homes, additions and apartments
Full Story
Modern Architecture
William Krisel’s Twin Palms: A Modern American Dream
By Colin Flavin
This innovative Palm Springs housing development turns 60 this year. See why it’s as relevant as ever.
Full Story
Architecture
Art of the Exterior: When Less Is More
See how limiting your materials makes an exterior stronger and more timeless
Full Story
Architecture
85 Years Ago, These Still-Standing Model Homes Saw the Future
The 5 remaining houses from the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair are still teaching us about innovative design
Full Story
Modern Architecture
Midcentury Marvel: Is That a Pool in the Living Room?
By Colin Flavin
Step inside the Raymond Loewy house, a modernist hideaway in the California desert designed by architect Albert Frey
Full Story
Was born and raised 20 miles south of Columbus. It has grown a lot since the early 70's. I remember driving past the North Christian Church and the Miller house. Lovely part of the city.
I thought the same thing about the pillows, but still love the home! And I agree with Lynn G's comments - as a student of design I have always said what are we going to call the periods after the 70s - 'builders specials' periods? Bring back well thought out, lasting construction.