tpcannon-net
In spite of his genius as an artist, and he no doubt is, I found this movie about his life to be tremendously depressing. It is eye-opening, but after an hour or so, I was ready to put a gun to my head. There seemed to be no joy in his life at all, other than laughing inappropriately at the circumstances of others.
willwoodmill
Crumb is documentary about the famous and controversial cartoonist Robert Crumb. The film was directed by Terry Zwigoff. Crumb is the second film directed by Zwigoff, the first being a documentary about Howard Louie Blue released in 1985. Zwigoff knew Robert Crumb before making the film, and had even played in Crumb's string band, but even with his close connections to Crumb it took a lot of convincing to let Zwigoff make the film. And the film itself was also very difficult to make, it took nine years to make on a a budget of roughly $200 per month. Zwigoff also said that he "slept with a loaded gun the pillow next to me trying to get up the nerve to kill myself." But Zwigoff's hard work paid of, because Crumb is a masterpiece.Robert Crumb is a cartoonist most known for his famous "keep on trucking" drawing, and his Fritz the Cat cartoon. Crumb is the ideal anti-celebrity. He turned down the offer to trademark and market the "keep on trucking" drawing several times, he also distanced himself with the Fritz the Cat animated film, and also refused to join any major magazines or comics. Mostly staying in small independent comics like Zap! For his life. And Crumb's counter culture attitude was perfectly represented in his art. His comics were typically crude, vulgar, depraved, and shocking. The film follows the career of Robert Crumb, how he started as a no-name cartoonist, who eventually got his disgusting comics hung in art galleries across the country. But the film doesn't just show us the history of Crumb's art. Zwigoff and Crumb go out and interview Crumb's family and we learn why Crumb is the way he is, delving deep into his psyche. To say that the art of Robert Crumb is "shocking" is a massive understatement. No matter how used to taboo's you think you are, it's hard not to feel repulsed by Crumb's art. Believe me I am not exaggerating when I say that much of it is sexist, racist, and overall just down right inhumane, and that may be enough to turn some people off. Several people that interviewed throughout the film are completely disgusted by Crumb's comics, and other find a strange sense of empowerment through his work. While most directors handling a documentary would just show a history of Crumb and his work, Zwigoff takes it to the next level by analyzing that art. In the very first seen of the film Zwigoff asks Crumb what the point of his work is, and Crumb says he doesn't really know what the point is, he just sort of figures it out as he goes along. So the film takes it upon itself to discover the purpose in Crumb's art, and it does this be interviewing Crumb's family, and this is where the film reaches its brilliance. The sections where they interview Robert Crumb's brothers, Charlie and Max, are some of the most depressing scenes in any film ever. We learn about how they mistreated and bullied each other and how their alcoholic father abused them, how Robert was rejected by the girls in his school, and how Charlie sexual fantasies never devolved past Bobby Driscoll from treasure island. Yes there is something truly saddening about these scenes, and the locations in which they're shot only add to this feeling. The crappy apartments that haven't been cleaned in weeks, with endless books covering the floors and walls, and the windows are covered with torn curtains. Robert and his brother Max, who became a painter, where able to escape this terrible fate through their art. But unfortunately Charlie was not able, and his horrible childhood ending up ruining his whole life.Crumb is not like most documentaries about artists, it doesn't just provide a history of Crumb's life and work, but instead the film seeks to really get at the heart of Crumb, what his art is, and why it is the way it is. Crumb did alright at the box office, but was a critical darling. But even with nearly every single review giving it a perfect rating, it still wasn't nominated for best documentary by the academy awards. (Ironically Hoop Dreams, another fantastic documentary that came out that same year wasn't nominated either.) But even with its snub, it still has gone down in history as one of the greatest documentaries ever, and was added to Roger Ebert's Great Movies in 2005. Crumb truly is not only one of the greatest documentaries ever, but one of the best films ever.
Charles Herold (cherold)
I was never a fan of R. Crumb's work, finding it unpleasant and ugly, but I heard the documentary was good and it certainly is. This is a fascinating portrayal not just of the highly eccentric Crumb but also of his even more off-kilter brothers. They are a very messed up family, so messed up that their upbringing was probably even worse than it is described in the movie.The film works in a number of ways. It does a good job of exploring Crumb's artwork, where it came from and how he approaches it (even though it's mainly about the personal we do see some of his craftsmanship as well. It shows how his comics generate extreme reactions, most notably in the opposing reactions of a pretentious English guy who talks about Crumb as a great artist and a painfully politically correct woman who says he legitimizes horrible fantasies by expressing them.But more than anything, this is a movie that reveals the Crumb's disturbing personalities and dismal lives. Perhaps the most disturbing thing about it is how casually they discuss themselves, laughing boisterously as they talk about their odd sexuality and abusive father.It's a rather downbeat documentary but well worth watching.
PaulyC
Here is a well done documentary of a very strange man named Robert Crumb who rose to fame as a cartoonist. His comics are off-beat, sometimes racist and almost always degrading to women. There is no disputing any of this from even Robert Crumb himself. Crumb just claims that all this stuff is inside him and needs to come out through his pencil. I actually admire this kind of truthful approach. Filmmakers Martin Scorsese and Federico Fellini come to mind as two others who put a lot of themselves in their work, although they do it on film and not paper. Robert Crumb became popular in the 60's for his psychedelic comics of the time including ZAP comics, one of his most popular. He has two brothers, Charles and Maxon who can also draw well but have had no real success with it. It's hard to believe but seeing these two brothers makes you actually realize that Robert was the "normal" one in the family! Definitely a scary thought. Has success gone to Robert's head? The answer is no. He consistently turns down offers from Hollywood that would make him very rich. Although I admire things about him, I found him kind of a jerk from how he treated other people. One instance is when someone says they love his work and would like an autograph and Crumb wouldn't even look at him and basically just let out his usual defensive laugh. What is curious though is that his wife, son and daughter seem almost well adjusted. Interesting. This movie is an interesting look into a strange artists life which delves into his tough upbringing to see just where all his twisted ideas come from. The DVD itself comes with a commentary by Roger Ebert and other goodies. Good Stuff!
