American: The Bill Hicks Story (2009)

• Year: 2009
• Released: 08 Apr 2011
• Country: United Kingdom
• Adwords: 4 nominations
• IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1179947/
• Rotten Tomatoes: https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/american_the_bill_hicks_story
• Metacritics:
• Available in: 720p, 1080p,
• Language: English
• MPA Rating: Not Rated
• Genre: Documentary, Animation, Biography
• Runtime: 102 min
• Writer: N/A
• Director: Matt Harlock, Paul Thomas
• Cast: Bill Hicks, Dwight Slade, Mary Hicks
• Keywords: conspiracy theory, dead man, joke telling, stand-up comedian,

	7.7/10
	55/100
	83% – Critics
	86% – Audience

American: The Bill Hicks Story Storyline

During his short life, Bill Hicks was more than just a stand-up comedian. He was a satirical icon, shocking audiences out of their comfort zones and pulling them into discussions about religion, society, consumerism and the mythical nature of the American Dream. While considered unpatriotic for his scathing commentary on American society, Hicks found huge success in the UK and Ireland. After his tragic death from pancreatic cancer at age 32, Hicks legacy lives on. In “American: The Bill Hicks Story,” producers Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas artfully combine performance footage, personal photographs and powerful interviews with Hicks’ family and friends, bringing this legendary and complex icon to the screen. If you don’t know Hicks now, you will understand his cult following by the end of this brilliant film.

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American: The Bill Hicks Story Movie Reviews

How do you do a legend justice?

Bill Hicks had built up a large and very loving fan base in his adopted home of the UK before his sad and early departure. One of life’s many contradictions is that the country that spawned a genius also spurned him, most notably David Letterman scrapping his final (of many) appearances on the late show. Bill felt it was a mere biological coincidence (listen to his routines) that he happened to be a Texan, and this comedian and social commentator belonged to the whole world rather than just two countries on either side of the Atlantic. He belonged to the whole world in my opinion because he had such a relevant and timeless message, that fuelled every polemic routine. I’ve been a fan of Hicks since I was 18 years old, making many of the discoveries this guy had made at the same age. For anyone who regards themselves alive enough to cherish self awareness and to contemplate questions such as why do the good guys die and the twisted little men thrive in their place, tune into Hicks (not Fox News). Fitting given his fan base that this documentary was made with love by two British directors. As I said, I consider myself a huge fan, but this film shed light on an already big star, especially his formative years and relationships with his friends and family. ‘American’ is a journey, a ride, and one you’ll be very glad you came along on.

More than a collection of comedy bits…

I was able to see this on my local cable provider’s VOD. I half expected this to be part biography and part collection of comedy routines. It was heavier on the biography part and not as much a retrospective of performance bits. That was perfectly fine because this documentary was more about the man and what drove his comedy. Also, it appears Bill Hicks was an incredible blues guitarist from the few audio clips played. Most of the beginning is about his family and upbringing which sourced his early comedy. It also described his friendships and the relationships that led him into comedy. Towards the end, more of Bill Hick’s comedy is performed, but more to emphasize the circumstances of his life and how he managed his career.

Bill Hicks will always be one of my favorite comedians, and to see the man behind the comedy was fascinating. I have a deeper appreciation of the man and his work after seeing this film.

So what did we learn?

I remember seeing Bill Hicks perform on various HBO specials in the early – mid ’80’s. I’d seen him a couple of times on Letterman, and didn’t think any more about him, until I had heard that he died at the age of 32 from pancreatic cancer.

I’ll admit, I was never a big fan of his. I thought that other comedians were doing somewhat similar material, and doing it better. So I watched this “documentary” to see if I could learn what I was missing or not “getting” about Hicks.

I’m not sure I was missing anything. This documentary does a fine job of telling you about his origins, and his life and the people he knew. But it does not inform you as to what he believed drove his comedy. It also doesn’t discuss the inner demons that he fought or explain why, after working so many years to build a career, he would just walk away from it, just because his act was edited.

His “rants” were not the stuff of Lenny Bruce or George Carlin. His talk of drugs was not as clever as Robin Williams or Sam Kinison. So the viewer is left still not able to understand why people love his comedy.

The film is told thru stop action animation, which is clever at first, but gets old real fast. It is hard to understand who is doing the talking, because actual live faces or names are rarely flashed on the screen.

On the whole, I’m glad I saw the film, but very disappointed with not having any greater insight to the man after having viewed it.

6 out of 10