Review of Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist (1997) by Michael C — 13 Dec 2010

A consistently bizarre, sad, funny, and in its own eccentric way, uplifting documentary detailing Bob Flanagan's final years of life. Flanagan was a performance artist who was born with cystic fibrosis; in order to cope with the continual pain he would live in for the entirety of his life (ultimately dying in his early 40's, Bob became a peformance artist that engaged in various activities that inflicted pain upon himself.

Much of the sadomasochistic activities he would engage in are shown in full detail in the film, and some of them are troubling to watch. What makes the film work though is Bob's attitude towards the whole thing.

He is incredibly funny throughout the documentary, and even as he is coming to the end of his life (which the documentary, at Bob's request, shows Bob in his final stages, through his death), he faces his mortality with a sense of humor.

And it provides an interesting look at an unconventional relationship in his love life with his girlfriend Sheree. Both of the individuals in the film certainly seem warped, but at their core they also seem like decent people, and watching the entire process made for an enthralling documentary feature.