American Splendor (2003)

User Rating:

7.7/10   

Directors:

Shari Springer Berman
Robert Pulcini

Writers (WGA):

Harvey Pekar (comic book series American Splendor) and
Joyce Brabner (comic book series Our Cancer Year) ...

Release Date:

12 September 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Comedy | Drama

Tagline:

Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.

Plot:

An original mix of fiction and reality illuminates the life of comic book hero everyman Harvey Pekar.

Plot Keywords:

Comic Book | Crumb | Celebrity | Hospital | Underground

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 28 wins & 32 nominations

Cast

Chris Ambrose	...	Superman
Joey Krajcar	...	Batman
Josh Hutcherson	...	Robin
Cameron Carter	...	Green Lantern
Daniel Tay	...	Young Harvey
Mary Faktor	...	Housewife
Paul Giamatti	...	Harvey Pekar
Harvey Pekar	...	Real Harvey
Shari Springer Berman	...	Interviewer (voice)
Larry John Meyers	...	Throat Doctor (as Larry John Myers)
Vivienne Benesch	...	Lana
Barbara Brown	...	Nurse
Earl Billings	...	Mr. Boats
Danny Hoch	...	Marty
James Urbaniak	...	Robert Crumb

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Brazil:14 | USA:R (certificate #39761) | USA:TV-14 (cable rating) | USA:TV-MA (TV rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:PG | Germany:6 | Iceland:LH | Mexico:B | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Portugal:M/12 | Singapore:PG | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | UK:15

Filming Locations:

Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Company:

Good Machine

Trivia:

Cameo: [Gary Dumm]longtime American Splendor artist is the gray-haired man getting his copy of "Our Cancer Year" autographed.

Goofs:

Factual errors: 38m00s into the DVD, there's a girl and a guy working in a comic store arguing about saving one issue aside for her whereas he sold all of them. Behind her are comics in protective covers, but standing upright on the wall on very thin shelves. A real comic store would affix the bags at the top edge, hanging them on the wall so that gravity doesn't cause the comics to "limp" and sag.

Quotes:

Harvey Pekar: Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Paul Giamatti/Ludacris featuring Sum-41 (#30.10)" (2005)

Soundtrack:

Silent Morning

Wow.

One of the very best films of 2003, this is such an original and brilliant bio-pic.Harvey Pekar is a file clerk working at a V.A. hospital in Cleveland.Pekar is terminally depressed and is amazingly played by Paul Giamatti (where's his Oscar nomination?). Pekar meets R. Crumb with an idea for a comic book about ordinary life. Pekar soon becomes a minor celebrity, but his life changes little. I knew right from the opening credits, this was going to be something special.Using different techniques, i.e. showing the real Pekar recording the narration and his buddy, Toby, the genuine nerd and inserting comic book pictures that in the corner of the screen that tell Harvey what to do, the filmmakers carve out such a unique experience that is both sad & funny. Like I stated before, Giamatti is remarkable and the script is exceptional on a "Being John Malkovich" level.

Rating: **** (out of ****)