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J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius

Play trailer 2:32 Poster for J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius Released Oct 16, 2020 1h 20m Documentary Comedy Play Trailer Watchlist
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100% Tomatometer 12 Reviews 36% Popcornmeter Fewer than 50 Ratings
An inside joke between two self-proclaimed weirdos from Texas leads them to turn conservative Southern ideology on its head and invent a religion all their own.
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J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius

Critics Reviews

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Steve Davis Austin Chronicle Director Boone and her crew make good use of those interviews, as well as grainy film footage and subliminal imagery, to document the story of Bob and his Church. Rated: 3.5/5 Oct 21, 2020 Full Review Dennis Harvey Variety Those who remember the gospel of "slack" will make this diverting-enough documentary an in-demand work at genre festivals, as a streaming item and in other forums. Mar 22, 2019 Full Review John DeFore The Hollywood Reporter Not only a colorful piece of weird-Texas history but a surprising commentary on the current state of the world. Mar 14, 2019 Full Review Chris McCoy Memphis Flyer In many ways, the SubGenius were ahead of their time. Dec 18, 2020 Full Review Cheryl Eddy io9.com J.R. "Bob" Dobbs and the Church of the SubGenius captures a period in history when rebelling against the boundaries of reality could still be a positively charged, life-altering experience. Oct 22, 2020 Full Review M.V. Moorhead Less Hat, Moorhead Overall, this portrait suggests a positive, even comforting religious experience. Oct 20, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Epic G klee boy y Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars 02/24/23 Full Review patricia n It's ok. Watch trailer first. See if it's your bag. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/30/23 Full Review dave d Your enjoyment will depend largely on your intoxication. Watching this sober will be a muddled bore. You know what, it's still pretty dull for the non sober also! You'll see some faces you recognize in a doc that never really comes together about a fake fake cult. Final Score: 5.6/10 Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Are you a genius, nearly? Have you nothing but disgust for society, except you'd still "like fries with that"? Then come watch this documentary. Here's the story of 2 off-beat losers and their unfollowers who found a self-consciously satirical cult (centered around Bob, a deity), which gets out of hand and morphs into something akin to an actual cult--oops (:P) It was cool to see a minor subculture grow organically from the ground up in reaction to the normie counterrevolution of the Reagan Era. Weirdos found each other and formed real connections pre-Internet, at some points almost by chance, cutting and pasting zines, and then sending them off in the mail to who knows? The movie is also a somewhat dark meditation on what it means to build something truly original, release it into the wild, and then lost control over it. Consequences of good old-fashioned irreverence were at times hilarious, awesome, and messed up. I found interviews with a number of the most Bob-ed of the Bob, including the founders, to be searching and reflective, and even remorseful. This movie, btw, has satisfied my curiosity about whether we would be better off if society's weirdos were in charge. In conclusion: GET LOST. This movie ain't for you!! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/26/23 Full Review Audience Member Praise Bob! 110%!! Also, SRSLY, thanks for this... I may now die happy. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 01/24/23 Full Review Audience Member Think for yourself, and don't get caught up in the narratives others spin for you. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 02/07/23 Full Review Read all reviews
J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius

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Cast & Crew

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Sandy K. Boone

Director

Douglass Smith

The Rev. Ivan Stang

Nick Offerman

Self

Richard Linklater

Self

Gerald V. Casale

Self

Penn Jillette

Self

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J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius

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J.R. "Bob" Dobbs & The Church of the SubGenius

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Movie Info

Synopsis An inside joke between two self-proclaimed weirdos from Texas leads them to turn conservative Southern ideology on its head and invent a religion all their own.
Director
Sandy K. Boone
Producer
Michelle Randolph Faires, Alyssa Spiller Sajovich, Jason Wehling, Suzanne Weinert
Screenwriter
Sandy K. Boone, Jason Wehling
Distributor
Dark Star Pictures
Production Co
Production For Use
Genre
Documentary, Comedy
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Oct 16, 2020, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
Oct 20, 2020
Runtime
1h 20m
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