Director: Terry Zwigoff
Starring: Robert Crumb, Aline Kominsky-Crumb, Charles Crumb and Maxon Crumb
Country: United States
Running Time: 120 mins
Year: 1994
Director Terry Zwigoff is one of the more underrated directors out there, in my opinion. My first exposure to his work was in Bad Santa, a mean-spirited Christmas comedy that was controversial at the time of its release but has since gone down as a modern Christmas classic at this point… to some. Before that, his film Ghost World was released and also has the mean-spirited edge that would follow in Bad Santa but with more well-defined characters, a hilarious screenplay and some of the most poignant commentary on what it means to be an outsider. The one Zwigoff film I always wanted to check out was Crumb, his documentary on the notorious cartoonist Robert Crumb and when I caught wind that Criterion were releasing their Blu-ray of the documentary over here in the UK, I had to request a screener.
To say that Crumb is an uncompromising documentary would be underselling it. It’s one of the most open (perhaps too open) portrayals of one of the strangest individuals to have ever lived. For those unfamiliar with his work, Crumb was well known for his satirical comics, some of which were adapted into other works such as the legendary Fritz the Cat, and even Zwigoff’s film Ghost World had a few passing references to his work. With Zwigoff’s documentary, we’re treated to a range of anecdotes about Robert’s career, with his family, exes and others close to him giving their thoughts on his work, their relationships with him and more. Also presented are a series of critics who give their own perspective on Crumb’s work, both positively and negatively, which makes for an incredibly compelling watch.
There’s so many cases out there of the wacky crazy artist who’s fascinating to watch on camera, but says questionable things and in most documentaries, the more controversial and uncomfortable aspects of these individuals would be scrubbed under the rug to offer a more squeaky clean portrait of their lives, but Zwigoff seems uninterested in painting Robert as some perfect individual. Whether it’s hearing stories about how Crumb would masturbate to his own, crude drawings, up to five times a day, or an uncomfortable encounter with an ex where he admits that he’s never been in love (despite telling her that he loved her hundreds of times during their relationship), you’d be hard pressed to consider Robert Crumb a morally good person.
Does that make the documentary hard to watch at points? Absolutely, but that’s a testament to how authentic and again, uncompromising Zwigoff’s Crumb is. It won’t be for everybody, and I can already see some people finding little to no enjoyment out of the crude, almost insensitive individual that the documentary focuses on, but for myself, it only made the experience all the more fascinating. It’s a hell of a documentary and to see it finally make its high definition debut over here in the UK for its 30th anniversary is great to see.
Film: 
Crumb released on the 5th August via The Criterion Collection on Blu-ray. The disc is a direct port of the US Criterion disc from 2010 and contains a solid video transfer for the documentary, in its original aspect ratio. Given that the film mostly consists of interviews, footage of Crumb’s art and stuff, the film isn’t visually striking but Criterion’s transfer is solid nonetheless. The Mono English audio track sounds as good as you’d expect too, with optional English subtitles included. The following extras are included:
DIRECTOR-APPROVED SPECIAL EDITION FEATURES
New, restored high-definition digital transfer, approved by director Terry Zwigoff, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray
Two audio commentaries, one featuring Zwigoff from 2010, and one with Zwigoff and critic Roger Ebert from 2006
More than fifty minutes of unused footage
Stills gallery
English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
PLUS: A new essay by critic Jonathan Rosenbaum and artwork by Charles, Jesse, Maxon, and Robert Crumb
Cover illustration by R. Crumb
Two audio commentaries are included, a solo track with director Zwigoff recorded in 2010 for this release and an archival track from 2005 with Zwigoff and critic Roger Ebert, which was recorded in 2006. The first track’s a solid listen to hear Zwigoff talk about his fascination with Crumb and what inspired him to create the documentary in the first place and it’s chocked full of anecdotes about the long shoot. The second track with Ebert and Zwigoff is even better, with Ebert gushing over the film and asking Zwigoff tons of fascinating questions. It’s the better track out of the two, but both are solid.
The fifty minutes of unused footage comprises footage that didn’t make the final cut, split up into fourteen individual chapters with some containing optional audio commentary by Zwigoff. For fans of the documentary, it’s a great watch and it wouldn’t surprise me if somebody’s made a fan cut incorporating all of this footage into the final product, knowing the internet.
A stills gallery is included.
I wasn’t provided with the essay, unfortunately.
While the Criterion release isn’t jam-packed with extras, the stuff here is all solid and worth checking out. The transfer looks pretty solid, given its age and the film itself will be marmite to many. However, if you’re in the mood for a shocking character portrait into one of the most bizarre artists out there, Crumb’s absolutely worth a watch. Recommended.
Disc/Packaging: