What Is It?
What Is It? ****
Directed by Crispin Glover
Written by Crispin Glover
Starring:
Michael Belvis as The Young Man
Adam Parfrey as The Minstrel
Steven C. Stewart as Dueling Demi-God Auteur and the young man's uber ego
Rikky Wittman as The minstrel's nemesis
John Insinna as The young man's outer sanctum friend and inner santum choking victim
Lisa Fusco as The young man's fantasy girl
Crispin Glover as Dueling Demi-God Auteur and The young man's inner psyche
Cheryl Brown as Outer Sanctum Mocking tormentor and walkie-talkie grabbing woman that cries later
Fairuza Balk as The Voice of the Snail
72 Minutes(Not Rated----Disturbing Content and Adult Situations)
--------------------
"What Is It?" is two things. Well, three things, actually. First it is the start of a trilogy that will obviously become a labor of love for writer/director Crispin Glover. It is the beginning of a subject that he cares about, that he is proud about filming, and something that will stay with him for a long while to come. Second of all, it is an unnerving delve into the subconscious, and one that makes more sense and one that you could care about more than David Lynch's "Inland Empire." And third of all, it is justification for Crispin Glover's participation in "Charlie's Angels" and "Epic Movie." How could he possibly pay for a film that has no big studio backing? He makes those horrible Hollywood flicks. Smart, Mr. Glover, very smart. "What Is It?" is indeed the directorial debut for Mr. Crispin Glover, and it is an ambitious project for such a talented man. And now, as Mr. Glover tours around the United States with his film in tow, he is creating this short hour and ten minute film into a three hour evening experience, and one that could be seen this weekend only in New York City's IFC Center. My rating for the film is four stars, the first four star film of the year, even though it isn't technically from this year. But this review will also explain what else Mr. Glover did with the evening, placing the film into a context that should be seen to fully get a glimpse at what he was going for.
The evening begins with Crispin Glover covered in a red light, and he starts with a reading of eight of his books, in a segment known as "The Big Slide Show." I did not know that Glover wrote books at all, but these beautiful small hardcover books were published in the 80's and early 90's. He reads in a perfectly dramatic voice, reading everything from the numbers on the pages to the footnotes on the bottom. It is almost comic, as he reads excerpts from "Rat Catching," teaching schools and headmasters how to catch rats, as well as "The New World" about an old man's journey through death. The books are all stylized like old Victorian type books-heavily illustrated with rather thick pages, photographs, and text that looks as if it was handwritten by Glover himself. Glover reads parts of eight of his books, never allowing it to become tedious or dull. He keeps the audience interested, makes them laugh during the most uncomfortable moments, and really does suck them in. The Slide Show was a perfect segway into the film, which came shortly after.
The film's story, if it even has a clear one, was described by Glover as "the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are snails, salt, a pipe and how to get home, as tormented by a hubristic racist inner psyche." If that isn't enough to get you interested, than I don't know what is. The entire cast is full of people with Down Syndrome. From what I could make of any plot, there is a young man who has an obsession with snails, and pouring salt over them so that they could shrivel up and die. Glover doesn't shy away from killing snails, even though in the Questions and Answers afterwards he's clearly states that he isn't an advocate for the death of snails. The young man goes out with his friends, and has a girlfriend of some kind, but his mind is haunted, and we get a visual interpretation of his mind as its worst. There are two Demigod's in his mind, dueling out to be number one. At the moment the psyche is taking over in the young man's mind, while the ego ends up sleeping in a clam like bed, getting touched by the various naked women all over the mind. And the mind is full of other things, from racist country songs about black people, to a white man in black face that claims that he is Michael Jackson, and finally to an image of Shirley Temple in front of a swastika(one of the greatest images that I will probably never see again. Glover was selling a poster for it after the film, but the 25 dollar price wasn't worth it. I bought a book instead.)
The film is shocking, and its great that Glover doesn't bother editing out anything that is extreme. He does not shy away from things that'll make you squirm and uncomfortable. Very much like David Lynch and Todd Solonez, two film makers that I admire very much-however Glover shows a little more compassion and care for his characters. Although there are moments where I don't exactly know what is happening, and I can't exactly grasp what relevance it has, every single frame of this film shows that Glover isn't basically masturbating on camera for himself, but he cares about his actors and their actions and their disease. I did not get the feeling of exploitation during any second here. When it comes to Lynch, there were moments during "Inland Empire" where I thought that it was too much, and in half the running time I felt like I just went through a dream-something that took "Inland Empire" three hours to do. And will it comes to Solonez, he has images and themes that make you squirm, but I never feel like he loves his characters-it's as if he pushes it to the limit. Two great film makers, but Glover tackles a similar style and does it somewhat better.
The night concluded with a Question and Answer, something that make me appreciate the film more. Glover's original intent on the film was to try and showcase those with Down Syndrome on film and to try to understand why they do not really show up in media often. He claims that the scene with the two Down Syndrome people kissing was the most controversial, mainly because people with Down Syndrome are never really shown as doing anything remotely like this-remotely human. And it is with this intention that I could see such care for these people-Glover doesn't want to show them with disrespect, but to show them just like you and me-like regular people. There was also clips and trailers for his next film, and the second in the trilogy, "It Is Fine, EVERYTHING IS FINE!!!" which is a journey into the mind of Steven C. Stewart, a real life Down Syndrome patient who appears here as the anti-character to Crispin Glover. It was his script, but he sadly died a month after filming ended. There will also be a third film in the trilogy "It Is Mine." While the latter has yet to be edited and completed, "It Is Fine, EVERYTHING IS FINE!!!" will be toured starting in November, and just appeared at Sundance a few weeks ago.
"What Is It?" will make you leave the theatre asking that very question, but that is exactly the point. It is a study on taboos in the media, and doesn't shy away from showing anything that could make you laugh in nervousness. It is not for everyone, but it should be seen, especially in the context of the Big Slide Show and Glover's Questions and Answers. He puts it at one point that there is a difference in seeing a film in the theatre, and seeing a film at home by oneself. There is an energy with numerous people that is not there with one person. Seeing this alone at home will take away from the experience and the various emotion and feeling. Glover has crafted a masterpiece, and is clearly gifted as a film maker. I am already making my plans to return home from college, wherever that may be, at the end of this year or the beginning of the next to see the second film here, one which Glover describes as being "the best film that I have ever or will ever work on in my career." I had the honor of meeting Glover afterwards and getting my book signed. I asked him why he agreed to do "Epic Movie" and he said that he just needs to keep working. I guess these films are one good thing to come from something like "Epic Movie." How ironic. . . . the worst film of the year ended up funding something great. It's funny how life goes full circle. . .
"What Is It?" is playing at the IFC Center on Feb. 9th, 10th, and 11th, at 7:30PM. Catch it this weekend before the opportunity is missing, and enjoy one of the best nights at the theatre that I have ever had. A true experience!
Directed by Crispin Glover
Written by Crispin Glover
Starring:
Michael Belvis as The Young Man
Adam Parfrey as The Minstrel
Steven C. Stewart as Dueling Demi-God Auteur and the young man's uber ego
Rikky Wittman as The minstrel's nemesis
John Insinna as The young man's outer sanctum friend and inner santum choking victim
Lisa Fusco as The young man's fantasy girl
Crispin Glover as Dueling Demi-God Auteur and The young man's inner psyche
Cheryl Brown as Outer Sanctum Mocking tormentor and walkie-talkie grabbing woman that cries later
Fairuza Balk as The Voice of the Snail
72 Minutes(Not Rated----Disturbing Content and Adult Situations)
--------------------
"What Is It?" is two things. Well, three things, actually. First it is the start of a trilogy that will obviously become a labor of love for writer/director Crispin Glover. It is the beginning of a subject that he cares about, that he is proud about filming, and something that will stay with him for a long while to come. Second of all, it is an unnerving delve into the subconscious, and one that makes more sense and one that you could care about more than David Lynch's "Inland Empire." And third of all, it is justification for Crispin Glover's participation in "Charlie's Angels" and "Epic Movie." How could he possibly pay for a film that has no big studio backing? He makes those horrible Hollywood flicks. Smart, Mr. Glover, very smart. "What Is It?" is indeed the directorial debut for Mr. Crispin Glover, and it is an ambitious project for such a talented man. And now, as Mr. Glover tours around the United States with his film in tow, he is creating this short hour and ten minute film into a three hour evening experience, and one that could be seen this weekend only in New York City's IFC Center. My rating for the film is four stars, the first four star film of the year, even though it isn't technically from this year. But this review will also explain what else Mr. Glover did with the evening, placing the film into a context that should be seen to fully get a glimpse at what he was going for.
The evening begins with Crispin Glover covered in a red light, and he starts with a reading of eight of his books, in a segment known as "The Big Slide Show." I did not know that Glover wrote books at all, but these beautiful small hardcover books were published in the 80's and early 90's. He reads in a perfectly dramatic voice, reading everything from the numbers on the pages to the footnotes on the bottom. It is almost comic, as he reads excerpts from "Rat Catching," teaching schools and headmasters how to catch rats, as well as "The New World" about an old man's journey through death. The books are all stylized like old Victorian type books-heavily illustrated with rather thick pages, photographs, and text that looks as if it was handwritten by Glover himself. Glover reads parts of eight of his books, never allowing it to become tedious or dull. He keeps the audience interested, makes them laugh during the most uncomfortable moments, and really does suck them in. The Slide Show was a perfect segway into the film, which came shortly after.
The film's story, if it even has a clear one, was described by Glover as "the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are snails, salt, a pipe and how to get home, as tormented by a hubristic racist inner psyche." If that isn't enough to get you interested, than I don't know what is. The entire cast is full of people with Down Syndrome. From what I could make of any plot, there is a young man who has an obsession with snails, and pouring salt over them so that they could shrivel up and die. Glover doesn't shy away from killing snails, even though in the Questions and Answers afterwards he's clearly states that he isn't an advocate for the death of snails. The young man goes out with his friends, and has a girlfriend of some kind, but his mind is haunted, and we get a visual interpretation of his mind as its worst. There are two Demigod's in his mind, dueling out to be number one. At the moment the psyche is taking over in the young man's mind, while the ego ends up sleeping in a clam like bed, getting touched by the various naked women all over the mind. And the mind is full of other things, from racist country songs about black people, to a white man in black face that claims that he is Michael Jackson, and finally to an image of Shirley Temple in front of a swastika(one of the greatest images that I will probably never see again. Glover was selling a poster for it after the film, but the 25 dollar price wasn't worth it. I bought a book instead.)
The film is shocking, and its great that Glover doesn't bother editing out anything that is extreme. He does not shy away from things that'll make you squirm and uncomfortable. Very much like David Lynch and Todd Solonez, two film makers that I admire very much-however Glover shows a little more compassion and care for his characters. Although there are moments where I don't exactly know what is happening, and I can't exactly grasp what relevance it has, every single frame of this film shows that Glover isn't basically masturbating on camera for himself, but he cares about his actors and their actions and their disease. I did not get the feeling of exploitation during any second here. When it comes to Lynch, there were moments during "Inland Empire" where I thought that it was too much, and in half the running time I felt like I just went through a dream-something that took "Inland Empire" three hours to do. And will it comes to Solonez, he has images and themes that make you squirm, but I never feel like he loves his characters-it's as if he pushes it to the limit. Two great film makers, but Glover tackles a similar style and does it somewhat better.
The night concluded with a Question and Answer, something that make me appreciate the film more. Glover's original intent on the film was to try and showcase those with Down Syndrome on film and to try to understand why they do not really show up in media often. He claims that the scene with the two Down Syndrome people kissing was the most controversial, mainly because people with Down Syndrome are never really shown as doing anything remotely like this-remotely human. And it is with this intention that I could see such care for these people-Glover doesn't want to show them with disrespect, but to show them just like you and me-like regular people. There was also clips and trailers for his next film, and the second in the trilogy, "It Is Fine, EVERYTHING IS FINE!!!" which is a journey into the mind of Steven C. Stewart, a real life Down Syndrome patient who appears here as the anti-character to Crispin Glover. It was his script, but he sadly died a month after filming ended. There will also be a third film in the trilogy "It Is Mine." While the latter has yet to be edited and completed, "It Is Fine, EVERYTHING IS FINE!!!" will be toured starting in November, and just appeared at Sundance a few weeks ago.
"What Is It?" will make you leave the theatre asking that very question, but that is exactly the point. It is a study on taboos in the media, and doesn't shy away from showing anything that could make you laugh in nervousness. It is not for everyone, but it should be seen, especially in the context of the Big Slide Show and Glover's Questions and Answers. He puts it at one point that there is a difference in seeing a film in the theatre, and seeing a film at home by oneself. There is an energy with numerous people that is not there with one person. Seeing this alone at home will take away from the experience and the various emotion and feeling. Glover has crafted a masterpiece, and is clearly gifted as a film maker. I am already making my plans to return home from college, wherever that may be, at the end of this year or the beginning of the next to see the second film here, one which Glover describes as being "the best film that I have ever or will ever work on in my career." I had the honor of meeting Glover afterwards and getting my book signed. I asked him why he agreed to do "Epic Movie" and he said that he just needs to keep working. I guess these films are one good thing to come from something like "Epic Movie." How ironic. . . . the worst film of the year ended up funding something great. It's funny how life goes full circle. . .
"What Is It?" is playing at the IFC Center on Feb. 9th, 10th, and 11th, at 7:30PM. Catch it this weekend before the opportunity is missing, and enjoy one of the best nights at the theatre that I have ever had. A true experience!
posted by Eric at
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