Synecdoche, New York

A minute-by-minute analysis of Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York (2008).

Blending film criticism with creative nonfiction, each book in the Timecodes series focuses on one film, exploring it minute by minute beginning with minute one, and ending with the final minute before the closing credits.

In the canon of Charlie Kaufman written/directed films, which include Being John Malkovich, Adaptation, and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Synecdoche, New York is perhaps the purest distillation of his aesthetics as it follows the protagonist, Caden Cotard, a theater director who struggles with his work and women as he creates a life-size replica of New York City inside a warehouse as part of his new play.

This book elevates this signature film to a higher place in the pantheon of Kaufman films with a nuanced, compassionate reading of a film that has a reputation for being removed and cold.