What Is It? is a bewildering, unnerving, surreal, blackly comic film from the visionary mind of Crispin Glover that tells the inner and outer struggles of a young man facing villains and dem... Read allWhat Is It? is a bewildering, unnerving, surreal, blackly comic film from the visionary mind of Crispin Glover that tells the inner and outer struggles of a young man facing villains and demons on multiple planes.What Is It? is a bewildering, unnerving, surreal, blackly comic film from the visionary mind of Crispin Glover that tells the inner and outer struggles of a young man facing villains and demons on multiple planes.
- Awards
- 2 wins total
Michael Blevis
- The young man
- (as Michael Bleviss)
Steven C. Stewart
- Dueling Demi-God Auteur
- (as Steven Stewart)
- …
Rikky Wittman
- The minstrel's nemesis
- (as Rickey Wittman)
Fairuza Balk
- Screaming Snail
- (voice)
- …
Zoryna Dreams
- Monkey Woman
- (as Zoreena Dreams)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Featured reviews
This is a movie we will all be talking about for a long time. It's full of disturbing images, dialogue that is very hard to make out in spots, and narrative tangents that make you, almost, forget what happened in the previous scenes. It all does gel together in the end, but you need to keep watching and be patient. I am so glad I did...Not many movies give me this much to think about. (These days, how many movies give you ANYTHING to think about?) A film that can make me simultaneously puzzled, grossed out, intrigued, offended, and delighted is worth seeing. I am still very glad the director was on hand to tell us what he was thinking about when he made this movie; otherwise I would still be guessing about it almost a month later. I really can't wait for the sequel.
I appreciate surrealist art. I like dark comedy, the subversive, the cryptic and the bizarre. however this movie is nothing more than a painful waste of time. it completely reeks of "trying too hard" and the use of actors with down syndrome acts only as a gimmick rather than adding any depth. i've seen Crispin glover in other things, and usually he passes as a decent actor. he thrives when he's playing some kind of weirdo. but the only worthwhile roles he's had were written and produced by other people. his own personal work in video or music (yes music) is mostly garbage. this movie is nothing than an answer to a trivia question.
I worked on the set of this movie in Salt Lake City, Ut and have some behind the scenes footage. Crispin is a wonderful person and this movie is great. After the movie, Crispin threw us a party and it was captured on VHS. There weren't any digital cameras back then, sorry. there is a talent showcase at the end of the party which is hilarious. However you tube deleted the last part which is a stripper. I have seen videos containing more nudity that the one I posted but they took it down anyway. If you get a chance please check out these exclusive videos. enjoy!
Check it Out!!
http://www.youtube.com/crucifixxkiss
http://youtu.be/NqRs_x1Dryw
http://youtu.be/KaGVHGEKRS0
http://youtu.be/hBeFnJXVbSE
Check it Out!!
http://www.youtube.com/crucifixxkiss
http://youtu.be/NqRs_x1Dryw
http://youtu.be/KaGVHGEKRS0
http://youtu.be/hBeFnJXVbSE
I thought this movie was supposed to be a drama, not a comedy! I thought the slide show with readings from the eight books before the film was ridiculous, and it seemed like Glover was desperately flailing in his attempts to try to sound like Hunter Thompson on acid. He needs to find his own creativity instead of trying unsuccessfully to be like others. The whole thing was pointless, though there were a few lines here and there that did make me chuckle.
But seriously, I felt like Glover was trying so hard to disturb people that he forgot about direction and plot. Was I disturbed? No. Disappointed? A little. I think it could have been a good movie, but it just wasn't put together just right. Glover, you need a do-over. I would see it again, but I do believe the experience would be better suited for ten or maybe fifteen, but not $25.
It's fine if Glover wants the protagonist to be fighting with racism in his inner psyche, but nothing screams "I want to offend people" like playing Johnny Rebel's "Some N*****s Never Die, They Just Smell That Way." That's not art, that's begging for attention.
The Q&A session afterwards? He had interesting answers, but basically it was all about "I'm trying to disturb people to make them think." Kick the dead horse a little more, why don't ya?
But seriously, I felt like Glover was trying so hard to disturb people that he forgot about direction and plot. Was I disturbed? No. Disappointed? A little. I think it could have been a good movie, but it just wasn't put together just right. Glover, you need a do-over. I would see it again, but I do believe the experience would be better suited for ten or maybe fifteen, but not $25.
It's fine if Glover wants the protagonist to be fighting with racism in his inner psyche, but nothing screams "I want to offend people" like playing Johnny Rebel's "Some N*****s Never Die, They Just Smell That Way." That's not art, that's begging for attention.
The Q&A session afterwards? He had interesting answers, but basically it was all about "I'm trying to disturb people to make them think." Kick the dead horse a little more, why don't ya?
It takes a very special kind of person to make a movie that is so wretched, beguiling, disgusting and repulsive, but make it in a way that also makes it brilliant and the quintessence of personal cinematic liberation. Crispin Glover, in all of his "out there" antics and predispositions, truly made something that is unique. In a world that has become starkly partisan, this film seems to evade the standard lines of creativity and art and effectively startle everyone.
Right off the bat, the film takes on a rather distant paradigm (if there really is a model at all) and initially shapes it with the likes of Shirley Temple in front of a swastika and naked women pleasuring a man with cerebral palsy. It's rather shocking stuff, but if you had the opportunity for the Q&A sessions after the screenings, it clearly opens up a bag of worms that leaves you wondering whether this is art or just the lowest common denominator. In either guise, you sense the tremor that this film will ultimately cause. It will never be accepted, not even by the supposed auteurs of the world who boringly speak about the human condition. You may not like it, but it is certainly something worth watching.
Right off the bat, the film takes on a rather distant paradigm (if there really is a model at all) and initially shapes it with the likes of Shirley Temple in front of a swastika and naked women pleasuring a man with cerebral palsy. It's rather shocking stuff, but if you had the opportunity for the Q&A sessions after the screenings, it clearly opens up a bag of worms that leaves you wondering whether this is art or just the lowest common denominator. In either guise, you sense the tremor that this film will ultimately cause. It will never be accepted, not even by the supposed auteurs of the world who boringly speak about the human condition. You may not like it, but it is certainly something worth watching.
Did you know
- TriviaCrispin Glover's directorial debut.
- Quotes
Dueling Demi-God Auteur and The young man's inner psyche: Good. He's dead. Now we can have a good time.
- Crazy creditsThis film has not advocated the assassination of Steven Spielberg in any way.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Durch die Nacht mit...: Juliette Lewis und Crispin Glover (2010)
- SoundtracksSome Niggers Never Die (They Just Smell That Way)
by Johnny Rebel
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime
- 1h 12m(72 min)
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content