tieman64
"The only downside to listening to Bill Hicks is that, once you've done so, almost every other stand-up comedian will sound like a waste of your time and an insult to your intelligence." - Andrew Mueller "I thought he was the most intelligent, most liberating social and political comic I had ever heard." - John Cleese Though he died in 1994, Bill Hicks' reputation has been growing steadily amongst comedians and comedy aficionados. Like Dean, Cobain, Marley, Morrison, Lennon etc, Hicks' death immortalised him, turned him into a hero, a microphone legend for the disillusioned youth of the 1990s.But to his fans, Hicks was more than an iconoclast. They saw him as prophet, a truth-teller whose message of love, hope, sense and reason lurked closely behind an outer facade of anger and cynicism. Describing himself as "Noam Chomsky with dick jokes", Hicks offered a strange blend of high brow and low brow comedy. He was the Holden Caulfield of stand up, exuding a dangerous and subversive cool. Hicks may once have described humanity as "a virus with shoes", but Hicks was never cynical - just angry and perpetually disappointed, as any compassionate, decent person should be.But it wasn't only his mixture of intellect and humour that made Hicks popular. Everyone loves an underdog, and Hicks was the ultimate showbiz underdog. With cancelled TV shows, censored television appearances and 12 years in the wilderness working in small clubs and empty bars, he struggled to catch a big break. He was hardworking and adored by fellow comedians, but at a time when American conservatism was at its strongest, homeland audiences simply failed to "get" Hicks' act. Then, just when stardom came knocking, Hicks developed pancreatic cancer. His audience didn't know it, but he was dying, his awareness of his impending death tingeing his later shows with a strange sense of melancholy. To some, Hicks' late shows are the closest stand up's ever come to a kind of spiritual comedy. And then Hicks died.Over the years, numerous other comedians would borrow from and be influenced by Hicks. George Carlin's entire late career emulates Hicks, though Carlin substitutes apathy and bitter disenchantment for Hicks hopefulness. Lewis Black, Doug Stanhope, Jon Stewart and a bevy of other comedians (including super-hack Denis Leary) would adopt Hicks' trademarks, mannerisms and intonations to great effect. And though dead, Hicks himself would slowly begin to gain fame. VHS bootlegs and late night HBO airings would spread his name, before the internet generation, and the second Gulf War, popped him back into the limelight. Having broken free of what he called "purple veined dick joke material" and developed a more politically and socially aware philosophy over a decade earlier, the now dead Hicks began to appeal to the jaded, twenty first century audiences of Generation Youtube. It also helped that his rants against the first Gulf War and George Bush Senior translated equally well to Gulf War 2 and George Bush 2.Hicks wasn't political in any complicated, dangerous or sophisticated way, but his scepticism about war, the arms industry, his libertarian view on drugs, his anti-corporate musings, his mocking of the stupid and/or ill-educated, bashing of presidents, love for tobacco etc, were novel on the stand up circuit at the time. Hicks' world-view – we are all energy, money and status are meaningless distractions, authenticity of feeling is paramount, embrace love, not fear – basically made him a hippie disguised as a punk or anarchist. And of course he bashed Rick Astley (of Rick Roll fame) long before anyone else did. Throw in a paedophilic satanic alter ego called Goat Boy, and you had one unique comedian.Directed by Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas, "American: The Bill Hicks Story" is an excellent documentary which has the hard task of making Bill's childhood years interesting, and chartering his long, lonely years on the road. The film consists of interviews with Hicks' family, associates and childhood pals, but the dialogue is sculpted such that the film plays less like a documentary and more like a moving 3 act tragedy. Coupled with this is an impressive style which revokes talking heads in favour for an animation technique which brings to life photographs of Hicks and his circle of friends. Aesthetically, I've never seen a documentary look quite like this.The film touches upon Hicks' childhood, his strict Baptist parents, his early days in comedy clubs, his fondness for Woody Allen and Richard Pryor, the incredibly early age at which he started comedy and his transformation from clean cut comic to ticked off alcoholic. More than this, the films shows why Hicks became the comedians' comedian. He was never sullied by Hollywood success, he was never given the opportunity to sell out, his life was cut short before he got stale and his career coincided with the age of the camcorder, all factors which contributed to his mythologization.8.9/10 – Whether you find Hicks to be good, great or overrated (he was probably a bit of all three), this remains a sad but entertaining doc. Fans may want to check out "Bill Hicks: Agent Of Evolution" and "American Scream: the Bill Hicks story", two books which to a better job at delving into Hicks' life.
tdclark0026
Watching recordings of Hicks, I am impressed at how his stand up shifts from vulgar bathroom humor to such profound social commentary. He truly was unique and ahead of his time. I guess it figures then his life was taken at such an early age. That seems to be the pattern we see in history with great thinkers (Ghandi, Jesus, etc). When I hear him speak, I caught myself saying, "He should've been president!" Instead he was regulated to doing comedy in two-bit clubs in the redneck south. Also of not is the wonderful picture-animation technique, which I have not personally seen before. It helped to fill in the gaps left by not having the titular character being present for an interview. See it and learn something.Your father didn't die for a flag. He died for the symbol that the flag represented, which is the freedom to burn the flag. -Hicks
web-accs
*...Who knows?.. I'm sure he would appreciate the fact that it is, at least, the truth.If anyone has not yet experienced any of Mr. Hick's incredibly funny, artistic and sometimes groundbreaking performances, expressing his ideas, opinions and beliefs through the medium of Stand Up comedy then (unless you are from another planet...) I would have to ask; "where have you been and what exactly have you been doing with your life??.."Although this was pretty well made and mostly interesting it is more a homage by his family and closest friends about his upbringing and his life from their point of view, not a detailed dissection of all his work and media appearances. It is also, perhaps, just a final gesture to the many fans to maybe set the record straight on a couple of minor details and to publicize his life again for a new generation of fans... Which, in an age of misinformation, illegal wars and rapid global change is, I think personally, very very important.It fails miserably however to really express just how great this man is and why he is revered by many as a genius and by most, not least his peers, as one of 'the' (sadly)rare and truly important artists in the relatively short history of the form. To be this is really a companion piece to the live recordings and the various other media floating around in the virtual ether.I gave it 8 out of ten just for the possibility that it will encourage some new fans to watch his stand up, learn about him and hopefully, more about the world around them in a humorous way.To me he still is a truly genuine human being in a world full of fake, fallacy and fear.An inspiration to anyone who believes in logic, reason, individuality, equality, the freedom to choose and that love is about the human race as one.Enjoy... :)
