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Crumb

R Released Apr 21, 1994 1h 59m Documentary List
95% Tomatometer 44 Reviews 89% Popcornmeter 5,000+ Ratings
Filmmaker Terry Zwigoff creates a complex but affectionate portrait of his longtime friend, underground cartoonist Robert Crumb. A notorious curmudgeon who would prefer to be alone with his fellow cartoonist wife Aline Kominsky-Crumb and his beloved vintage jazz records, Crumb reveals himself to be a complicated personality who suffered a troubled upbringing and harbors a philosophical opposition to the 1960s hippie underground that first celebrated his work.
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Crumb

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Critics Consensus

Crumb is a frank and surreal chronicle of artistic expression and family trauma, offering an unblinking gaze into the mind and work of cartoonist Robert Crumb that will endear as much as it unsettles.

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Critics Reviews

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Jonathan Rosenbaum Chicago Reader The point is, even a screwball like Crumb had more workaday wisdom to get me through the night than most of what the rest of the culture was offering–or still has to offer, for that matter. Rated: 4/4 Jun 7, 2022 Full Review Manohla Dargis Spin By turns hilarious and grim. Apr 18, 2022 Full Review Michael Sragow New Yorker The movie isn't a testimonial or a valentine. It's unpredictable and galvanizing: an empathetic portrait of the artist that also unveils a trenchant view of an American family's dashed illusions. Jan 14, 2019 Full Review Quentin Curtis Independent on Sunday Zwigoff's film rarely feels exploitative, and the fascination of Crumb and his family should not disguise the director's skill and sensitivity in marshalling his material. Dec 13, 2017 Full Review R.L. Shaffer IGN DVD Crumb may be rough around the edges, even occasionally tedious, but what Zwigoff manages to uncover is honest, captivating and strangely visceral. Rated: 9/10 Oct 14, 2010 Full Review Sean Axmaker MSN.com (An) offbeat and often uncomfortably revealing portrait of the legendary underground comic book artist Robert Crumb and his brothers, Maxon and Charles... Aug 11, 2010 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Jack G My personally favourite documentary. The tumult of genius, the power of art, and family abuse in all its surrealism. Just has straight balls. It exists outside of any label or genre. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 09/21/24 Full Review Bucky R An amazing doc about an amazing artist. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 04/29/24 Full Review david f This is pretty much a masterpiece as a documentary, getting at all the many motivations and inspirations of its title character, the comic artist, Robert Crumb. Lots of his work is on display here for the viewer to form their own opinion but there's also critics, boosters, and commentators galore to analyse it one way or another. I particularly loved Robert Hughes, the old Time Magazine art critic from Australia, who brings an articulate, funny, and brilliant eye to bear on the work of the artist (and his reaction when told that Crumb masturbates to his own work is priceless). I don't know what to say about the Crumb family other than to point out that this film shows them for who they are, warts and all, in a non-judgmental way that quite frankly is a model for documentary filmmaking. I may have cringed at times, and wanted the film to take a position, but on some level I'm glad it did not and I think that is part of what makes this film so great, so perfect. Crumb attributes his start to his older brother Charles, and the movie ends on a quote from Charles, and in between there is much of Charles and Robert together, showing off what is left of their dynamic together, and it's one of the keystones of the film. I remember watching this movie when it came out when I was a teenager-it made me run to Tower Records to start buying volumes of The Complete Crumb Comics. It's every bit as good now as it was then, a true American Original about a True American Original. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review William L After watching the opening credits, I was left wondering how David Lynch would tackle a documentary of an American underground cartoonist, only to find out later that his name was tacked on in post-production and that he had very little influence over the film itself. That's kind of a letdown. A documentary of an artist where the art itself, while certainly an influence on popular culture, is totally secondary. Zwigoff uses the work of R. Crumb, which ranges from well-regarded satire to highly controversial work that blurs the line between sincere biases and insightful commentary, as a means of tackling personal trauma. Crumb himself is not a good person, directly admitting a loathing of the opposite sex and dabbling in areas that some would find difficult to stomach. But as the film goes on, you're introduced to the context of his upbringing and how he was made into the cartoonist he became, featuring a mash-up of childhood trauma, cultural conflicts, and personal tragedies. While to the outside world he is at the most generous a particularly colorful character, in his family he is far and away the most well-adjusted individual. The contrast between these two worlds - the strange simmering cauldron where he was born and formed his personality, and the outside world that judges him through his work exclusively, is the film's clincher. (4/5) Rated 4 out of 5 stars 01/20/22 Full Review Audience Member it is a beautiful world, mr. crumb you're extremely talented - but all the talent that exists or has existed will never replace humanity and nobody gives a shit because you're probably dead by now and nobody fucking cares. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/20/23 Full Review Audience Member It's very personal, hell I'd say intrusive, of the artist's personal life, but hey, it was made under Robert Crumb's permission.
 Zwigoff's careful direction gives us no bullshit as we learn the endearing highs and disturbing lows which colour the original comic life of "Crumb".
 This is a masterful example on how a documentary should protect its integrity without sacrificing entertainment quality. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/22/23 Full Review Read all reviews
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Movie Info

Synopsis Filmmaker Terry Zwigoff creates a complex but affectionate portrait of his longtime friend, underground cartoonist Robert Crumb. A notorious curmudgeon who would prefer to be alone with his fellow cartoonist wife Aline Kominsky-Crumb and his beloved vintage jazz records, Crumb reveals himself to be a complicated personality who suffered a troubled upbringing and harbors a philosophical opposition to the 1960s hippie underground that first celebrated his work.
Director
Terry Zwigoff
Producer
Terry Martinelli, Lynn O'Donnell, David Lynch
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics, Columbia Tristar
Production Co
Superior Pictures
Rating
R
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Apr 21, 1994, Original
Release Date (Streaming)
Sep 20, 2011
Box Office (Gross USA)
$19.9K
Runtime
1h 59m
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