Review of Being Elmo: A Puppeteer's Journey (2011) by Jordan K — 20 Jan 2013

A great movie for all audiences that is very, very interesting. It's a documentary about the puppeteer of plays Elmo on Sesame Street, Kevin Clash. Clash grew up wanting to work on Sesame Street and with legend Jim Henson, so he made his own puppets at home and followed his dream, despite ridicule from people at his school.

Clash eventually worked on public access shows, then on Captain Kangaroo, then on Henson's 1984 film Labyrinth before playing numerous puppets on Sesame Street. In 1987, Elmo was introduced as a somewhat worthless character with a scratchy voice for a short time before he was turned into the Elmo we know today.

It of course shows the 1997 "Tickle Me Elmo" frenzy and how Elmo turned from a recurring Muppet to today's most known muppet. It's a shame what happened to Clash nowadays. He was accused of being in sexual relationships with a teenage boy which caused so much controversy that Clash quit Sesame Street and was no longer Elmo.

It's sad yet disturbing at the same time, but still Clash seems like a nice guy and I think right now he's just in a big mess. Being Elmo is an excellent, good hearted movie for all ages.