The Adventures of Crispin Glover

So, I saw What Is It?, the directorial debute (I think) of Crispin Glover. Many people know him only as McFly from the Back to the Future series, Willard, or from Charlie's Angels (which I haven't seen). In fact going back until about 6 years ago, I didn't know who he was. It was only from a co-worker mentioning how excited he was that there was a new Crispin Glover movie coming out, did I know that such a name existed. However, having seen River's Edge earlier this year, I'm in a Crispin state of mind.

Once before, a couple of years ago, I stood in line at Anthology Film Archives to get tickets to this movie. I arrived 3 hours before, in the cold, and there was a line around the block. I did not get tickets but I knew someone, who knew someone, who did and they said it was crazy.

What is it? started as a movie staring actors with downs syndrome and grew into a movie about provocation. Crispin Glover tours with this film and a slide show he presents before the film. Afterwards there is a Q&A. This, in my case, set many of the issues I had into context. Glover attempts to present content that is "outside the realm of good and evil", meaning a non-corporately influenced or censored material. In this case that means people with downs syndrome pouring salt onto snails and a woman with a monkey mask masturbating a man with multiple sclyrosis. This is the world we're entering.

To say the film is difficult and inaccessable, is an understatement. The only reason I didn't hate this film was that I could see that there were some ideas at work, some artistic intent and lofty goals. However it's a film wherein most of the dialogue is incomprehensible, and the narrative, which Glover in the Q&A described as traditional, is nonexsistent.

I can't rate this film without taking into account the slide show that preceeded it. The slide show was much more interesting than the film and consisted of books from the 1800s, reworked by Glover. Themes begin to surface as the pieces are read and the occasional funny line punctuates the madness.

Overall Glover was an excellent host and portrayed himself as an artist and I believe he is one. I give the film 2 stars, but when combined with the slide show I give 3 stars.