Review of The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2006) by Mark A — 21 Aug 2009

Creative genius and severe mental illness often come together in one package and such is the case with Daniel Johnston. His creative output is phenomenal with maybe a dozen self-produced albums, countless cassette tapes of his thoughts and interviews through the years, miles of video and film footage and a prodigious amount of drawings, paintings, posters, t-shirts and all manner of graphic art.

But he has had to fight his personal demons and has spent time in mental institutions when he loses touch with reality. The documentary film makers here had plenty of material to choose from and have done a terrific job of presenting the man and his art.

You may think you've never heard of him, but according to the closing credits, more than 150 artists have recorded his music. This film had drama, and pathos, and humor, and presented the man and his art in such a way that one saw past the quirks and the self-destructive behavior and got a glimpse of pure genius.