DVDizzy Forum

I just watched the American Splendor DVD the other night. Why the hell isn't the excellent Paul Giamatti up for an Oscar?

Anyhow I mention this because I know that there are a lot of Lost in Translation supporters on this board, and I think while very different, they have a sort of similarity. I guess people who like LiT will like AS*.

But that aside, it really is a wonderful movie. It's become one of my favourites already.

* If you watch it, and you don't, don't blame me. The devil made me type it.

Believe it or not, I have not seen either yet. Almost purchased LiT today as a blind buy, but decided against it. I have enjoyed Giamatti in his other roles so I'll definitely rent American Splendor...heck, we'll probably rent BOTH and watch them back-to-back.

Eeee!! Yay for AS! I rented it the same day I rented Hakuna Matata just so I could at least have something to wash the bad taste out of my mouth afterwards. I very quickly decided I must have this film on dvd. I knew a fair bit about it already, and have been meaning to see it for ages, but I still was taken aback by how great it was! I mean, come on - it's such an uplifting tale!

One thing I wasn't expecting was how very self-aware the film was. Not 5 minutes into it, and the camera cuts to the real Harvey Pekar sitting in a sound booth doing the narration. With the sound tech gal checking between takes to see how he's doing. Hehe... so in a sense, it's kind of a biopic - it definitely was a lot more nonfictional than I initially thought. The asides kinda remind me of Fight Club's frequent "fourth wall" stops - like the comic panels screening over the live action Harvey and saying stuff like, "Another reliable disappointment" or, "Well, another short-term goal accomplished."

I felt pretty bad for Harvey becoming such a laughingstock for the mainstream media. It was never about the comic books - they didn't sell any better when he plugged them. Instead it was just his own image - it seemed to be kinda "neutered" into just a silly little curmudgeon until he finally lashed out. I can't believe that Letterman interview! Pekar was actually talking (well, ranting) about real issues, and they wanted to shut him up with a shih-tzu! I don't blame Pekar for blowing up - Letterman would probably do that to me too!! *is a Conan groupie all the way*

But anywho, yes - good film. I want it. Its tagline describes it perfectly - "Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff."

It's a shame they couldn't get the Letterman apperences as a supplement on the disc (barring the final one of course, I doubt that they would licence that out!).

Actually, I've done some digging and it appears that like Man on the Moon they seem to have kept all the events, but put some into a different order (I suppose to make the story "flow" better. A shame, as it really doesn't need to "flow" - that's not the point of the film).

I suppose I need to check out the comics now (being a Marvel fan, I used to keep up with most 'other' comics too and was already well aware of American Splendor).

I suppose I should make an effort to see Revenge of the Nerds now!

Well American Splendor is coming to the UK, and it seems to have a few additional feautres:

Introductions to DVD extras by Harvey Pekar. Group audio commentary with directors, cast and Harvey Pekar. Harvey at the BBC: Interview with Harvey Pekar. Featurette: Sundance Channel's 'Road to Splendor'. Behind the Scenes: mini-featurettes on characterization, title sequence and Robert Crumb. Trailers.