Review of The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2006) by Ramona F — 07 Dec 2006

No one can accuse filmmaker Jeff Feuerzeig of wussing out on his subject. His warts-and-all look into the life of bioplar manic-depressive singer/songwriter Daniel Johnston conveys all the inner turmoil of Johnston's brilliant-but-tortured soul even as it sometimes careers deadly close to exploitation.

There's no denying the freak-show quality to observing this guy, but it's not always because of his deteriorating mental condition. More often, you're awed by his luminous and frighteningly direct lyrics of love and pain.

.. to say nothing of the ebullience with which he tackles every single performance. Johnston's old home movies and tape recordings lend an eerie validation to the rocky path of his life, and I can almost guarantee you'll find yourself wanting to seek out his music afterwards.

I'm planning my purchases now. (Bonus feature: don't miss the 26-years-in-the-making reunion with Laurie, his onetime love and lifetime muse.).