Okay,

I have kind of considered myself to be at the tail end of Gen X. I was born in 1974. Most articles on Gen X say it ends at about 1976 or so. . .

The best definition I have been able to come up with is that you grew up seeing Schoolhouse Rock! on Saturday morning cartoons. . .

I have read Coupland's Generation X, and Microserfs, and have seen all the movies on your list (And am a fan of all of them.)

That said, the main common thread that I can find in them is that they are solidly aimed at . . .well. . . geeks.

I say this as someone who:
can quote Monty Python until your ears bleed,
knows what the letters in SHAZAM stand for,
knows what Heisenberg was uncertain about,
knows that John Ratzenberger had a bit part in Empire Strikes Back,
knows who the Knights Templar were, and why the Pope was po'd at them,
knows the 7 Principles of Kwanzaa, and is white,
knows why Vulcans freak out every seven years,
knows what y=mx+b should graph as,
can name the capital of Zaire, without an atlas,
knows that Spock was only half-Vulcan,
knows Dr. Frank N. Furter's home planet,
knows that Triangle Man hates Person Man,
and is *still* not working up to his potential. . .

(Just making sure that my geek credentials are in order and up-to snuff.)

That said, I think that Gen X is the first generation to be pop-culture saturated. If you look at all the works you referenced, all made by "Gen X auteurs," you can see they are obsessed with obscure bits of pop-culture floatsam and jetsam.

Kevin Smith wears it on his sleeve, but even Fight Club has its moments. One of the running lines in it references an old Reader's Digest series on parts of the body. ("I am Joe's Liver" et. al.)

I can see your point about the works escaping "hollywoodism," but maybe I am missing your larger theme.

And now that I am ranting and rambling into incoherence, what did you want to dicuss about them?

Please don't read any of this as a flame at all, I just want to know what direction you want the discussion to take. Let us know!

__________________

"Forget your stereotypes, your fears. Straight people are not what you
have been led to believe. They're a wonderfully diverse bunch, though the flamboyant ones hog all the media attention."