"Ordinary life is
pretty complex stuff." - Harvey Pekar
SYNOPSIS
Harvey Pekar (Paul
Giamatti) is a frustrated file clerk at a V.A. Hospital, but also
a comic book fan who befriends the young illustrator Robert Crumb
and is soon inspired to create comic books based on his own life,
entitled "American Splendor." Along the bumpy journey, he meets,
marries and falls for Joyce, an admiring comic book seller (Hope
Davis).
CRITIQUE
Who would've thought
a regular guy like Harvey Pekar, although he's far from it, would
make such a funny subject for a film? Well, the filmmakers behind
American Splendor did. Pekar could be considered unusual,
but then again he's just like every other person; he complains.
The film is based on the comic book series "American Splendor" by
Pekar, which consisted of every day issues and dilemmas. From what
I could gather after watching the film, the series must've been
quite funny, seeing as how it inspired directors Robert Pulcini
and Shari Springer Berman to write and direct a film about it.
They could've approached this film in many ways, and who knows if
they considered other options, but in the end their way seems the
most original, funny, effective, and rewarding.
American Splendor
is not all film, but also part documentary. Right from the
beginning, viewers can get a sense of how this film is going to
go, and I don't mean that it's predictable; not at all. One word
that could describe the film the best, it would have to be
"original". In essence, Pulcini and Berman interject documentary
footage with Harvey Pekar inside an all-white space where he
records narration for the film and answers specific questions that
will later translate to the film. On the other side of things,
Paul Giamatti stars as Pekar, going through life in a somewhat
lazy and unenthusiastic mood. His job as a file clerk is boring,
and things change for the worse when his voice starts giving away,
and he sounds like a robot almost.
But as the film
continues, and we get to know Harvey a little better, things begin
to look brighter, especially when he meets Robert Crumb, a young
illustrator, who agrees to do the artwork on Harvey's life
stories, essentially contributing to Pekar's comic book series.
Then one day he meets Joyce, and they decide to get married. As
ordinary as this might sound to you, you don't know Harvey Pekar,
who can make even the simplest of things and situations into
complex ones. As he says in the film, "Ordinary life is pretty
complex stuff." This line is perfect, and in the case of
American Splendor it opens up all sorts of possibilities for a
funny, quirky, and brilliant film. But it all starts with the
ingenious screenplay by Pulcini and Berman.
The script is very
good at presenting and introducing Harvey Pekar. The things he
says and does are just so funny in a strange sort of way, and with
a dead-on, excellent performance by Paul Giamatti, Harvey becomes
a pretty interesting guy, one viewers can root for and identify
with on at least one familiarity - he likes to complain a lot,
too. Funny, too, is his best friend Toby Radloff, played by actor
Judah Friedlander, and by himself in the documentary part of the
film. But Toby is really a nerd, albeit an intriguing one. His
highly-accentuated accent sells the part, so to speak. Playing
Joyce, Harvey's wife, is Hope Davis, who does a pretty good job
here, sharing realistic and funny chemistry with Giamatti.
When American
Splendor is at its best, it makes funny statements, offers
quirky reactions, and just gives you that certain sense of
personality; that what you're watching is genuine and real.
There's a brilliant monologue by Giamatti about half-way into the
film, and the things he has to say really speak to the viewers, I
think. It's not that he gives specific advice or something, it's
more like a rant, a funny one at that. At another point he makes
several appearances on the David Letterman show, talking about his
comic book but mainly going into uproarious discussions with the
host. Those passages are a great example of the ingenious way the
filmmakers blend together footage of the real Harvey on the show
and Giamatti playing him before and after the appearance inside
the dressing room. There are also some funny moments with a
cartoon-like Harvey popping up at the top of the screen and
ranting about something specific, best example of this is when
Giamatti's Harvey waits in line at the supermarket.
Well, without saying
any more about the plot or revealing certain scenes in the film,
let me end this review by stating this film is one my top ten
favorites of the year 2003. It manages to be funny and dramatic at
the same time, the performances are right on the money, the
characters interesting, and the film's approach is simply
brilliant. I highly recommend you check into this film and get to
know Mr. Pekar, his family, and best friend Toby.
THE VIDEO
HBO presents
American Splendor in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen. Colors
are not specifically bright, but they're well-saturated and
detail is quite good. Sharpness is fine, and black levels are
mostly solid. The transition to the documentary footage is
handled well, with the white background looking solid without
any faults. On the whole, the print image looks good. I didn't
notice compression artifacts, but a few areas of grain and some
specks appeared. All things considered, it's a simple and pretty
decent presentation, nothing complex.
You can
select to view the film with English, French and Spanish
subtitles.
THE AUDIO
HBO presents
American Splendor in English 5.1 Dolby Surround Sound.
This presentation is mostly front-heavy, which makes sense
considering the film is all dialogue; there are no large sound
effects. The dialogue is always clear and easy to understand,
except the few times when Toby Radloff's accent sounds a bit
heavy. Surrounds are active a few times, and rear speakers don't
get a lot of attention, only sparingly. The soundtrack sounds
nice, with songs reproduced across the channels for decent
effect. Overall, this audio presentation fits the material just
fine.
An English 2.0 Dolby
Surround track is also available.
THE EXTRAS
The main
supplement is a
group audio commentary with directors and cast.
Participants are directors Robert Pulcini and Shari Springer
Berman, star Paul Giamatti,
Harvey Pekar, Joyce Brabner (his wife), Danielle Batone (his
daughter) and Toby Radloff (his friend).
For some reason Hope Davis did not take part. Radloff begins the
track by introducing everyone, and then all sorts of discussions
follow, sometimes scene-specific, sometimes anecdotes about the
production or things about Harvey, Toby, and other people. I
think this is the first commentary for Giamatti, then again it's
the first for everyone involved also. Usually everyone speaks up
and gives some interesting comments, but I thought Giamatti
would've had some more things to say. Making up for that minor
loss, however, are thoughts from Brabner, Batone, and Pekar
himself. Gaps of silence accompany this track, some are very
short, others last at least a minute. Overall, a pretty decent
track with some funny parts. Those who like the film should give
it a listen.
Next is Road to
Splendor (5:26), a featurette that follows Pekar's journey
to film festivals and premieres for the film's theatrical
release. Some guy narrates the program that features interviews
with many different people, but prominently with Pekar and wife
Joyce Babner. The footage here is pretty neat. After Sundance
Pekar attends the Cannes Film Festival where reporters ask him
some questions, one of which is, "What do you think of the
French," to which he responds, "They do a wonderful job on my
laundry." He next travels to the San Diego Comic Con where he
briefly gives his thoughts on the different people attending,
and last but not least he visits the film's LA and NY premieres.
At the end, Pekar is asked if the road to splendor is over, and
he says he doesn't even know what it is. Overall, this is a neat
program, but ultimately a little short and too general.
Then there's
the American Splendor song, written and performed by Eytan Mirsky.
You can play it and stop it at any time. The disc also includes a funny
eight-page DVD
comic book insert, which contains Harvey Pekar's "My Movie
Year", featured in an issue of Entertainment Weekly.
There are also a
few
easter eggs are hidden among the different menus. To get to
them, let the menus run for a while and an object will appear
that you can click on. In Languages you need to wait two minutes
and a record player will show. Click it and you'll get a very
brief clip about the film's blue-screen work. In Chapters, go to
the end of the selections, highlight main menu, and then press
right on your remote, which will highlight an arrow. Click it
and you'll get to see a 75-second clip explaining why Paul
Giamatti and Hope Davis could never look at each other during
shooting. Lastly, go to the Special Features menu, look for the
speaker on the drive-thru board, move over it, and you'll get a
one-minute clip discussing Toby Radloff's "nerdness."
Rounding
out the extras is the film's theatrical trailer, an
HBO Films on-air spot that's edited quite nicely with great
music, DVD credits, and
DVD-ROM features (wallpapers, screensavers). The extras are
fine and fun in the overall sense, but I would've liked an
interview featurette or something of that kind, especially since
the Giamatti/Davis easter egg clip contained interviews with
said actors. Where's the rest, eh?
Menus are animated, easy to navigate
and pretty neat.
The special features menu is quite amusing, listen to the whole
drive-thru order conversation (2:34). The 101-minute feature is organized into twenty-two
chapters. A paper insert lists scene selections.
FINAL THOUGHTS
American Splendor
is part documentary and part drama/comedy, and it works brilliantly.
The characters are interesting, their lives so ordinary yet complex.
HBO's video/audio presentations are perfectly fine considering the
material, and the extras are quite nice, despite the lack of what I
think is a missing interview section. Seek this one out as soon as you
can. Fans should make this a purchase, no doubt, and others might want
to look into that as well.
