The Devil and Daniel Johnston is an unflinching yet loving look at the outsider musician's life. It's also the most revealing look at genius and mental illness since Terry Zwigoff's 1994 documentary Crumb.
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08/10/06
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The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2006)
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Reviews Counted:28
Fresh:26
Rotten:2
Average Rating:7.9/10
Consensus: Whether you think this mentally ill cult musician is worthy of being called a "genius," this document of his life is crafted with sincere respect and is fascinating to watch.
Theatrical Release:Mar 31, 2006 Limited
Synopsis: Although his appeal barely stretches beyond a small band of obsessives in the tight-knit indie-rock community, the turbulent career of singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston has had more highs and lows... [More]
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Reviews for The Devil and Daniel Johnston
Top CriticI found the documentary surprisingly diverting as a case study.
05/12/06
Top CriticThis well-done documentary will explain why Johnston has never been able to rise above cult status ...
04/28/06
Top CriticFeuerzeig was able to fashion such a thorough, engaging film partly because aficionados such as Lee Renaldo of Sonic Youth shot so much footage of Johnston performing and acting out.
04/28/06
Top CriticLike Capturing the Friedmans, Devil is loaded with revealing footage, rife with psychodrama, including a creepy home movie in which the teenage Johnston plays himself and his overbearing mother.
04/28/06
Top Critic... an uncomfortably fascinating document of a man whose bipolar disorder and artistic ambitions are inextricably connected.
04/28/06
Top CriticDevil leads us into that dark, uncharted valley where evil, genius, divine inspiration, insanity -- and other unfathomable mysteries -- commingle.
04/27/06
Top CriticA searing, compassionate portrait of chronic mental illness.
04/21/06
Top CriticAn inspired piece of work by someone who knows and admires Mr. Johnston but doesn't cover up the warts. It's also the rare documentary possessed with an artistry that transcends its subject.
04/20/06
Top CriticPerhaps Feuerzeig wanted to get away from the stereotypical 'talking head' interview, but by having the subject stop periodically to rinse and spit?
04/20/06
Top CriticJohnston's fringe existence may not speak to the most universal of truths, but the man certainly isn't cut from a cookie-cutter mold.
04/14/06
Top CriticJeff Feuerzeig, who won the best director award at Sundance 2005 for this film, has started with a subject who has filmed himself and been filmed by others for more than 20 years.
04/14/06
Top CriticFeuerzeig recounts it all with clear-eyed candor, turning to Johnston's battered friends and family for insight and empathy and to Johnston's tapes and drawings for an inside look at his illness.
04/13/06
Top CriticWhether Johnston is a genius or a wonderful anomaly remains to be seen, but director Jeff Feuerzeig has stitched together a detailed portrait of the artist's life and music that is never less than compelling.
04/07/06
Top CriticFeuerzeig's film is as good a portrait of the artist as a beloved basket case as you'll see, but it's kept from greatness by the questions it refuses to ask itself.
04/07/06
Top CriticIt doesn’t condescend [to Johnston], it doesn’t exploit him. It just tells us about his life.
04/03/06
Top CriticAs its title suggests, the picture is something of a ballad, an ode to an elusive character who's both quintessentially human and so outlandish he almost seems unreal.
03/31/06
Top CriticFeuerzeig paints a loving portrait of the up-and-down life of the troubled 45-year-old -- sort of a poor man's Brian Wilson.
03/31/06
Top CriticEverything a good documentary should be.
03/31/06
Top CriticDevil turns out to be too indulgent and worshipful a film to justify its length (one hour and 50 minutes, including an interminable section on Johnston in high school), much less hold our attention for the duration.
03/31/06
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