If, by some chance, you are not familiar with the old Hans Christian Anderson tale, "The Emperor's New Clothes", find a copy and read it before, during or after you view this film. As documentary film-making, I have no question that you have great effort, talent and craftsmanship here. The problem is that the infantile, artless work of the film's subject matter is unbelievably appalling and worthless. The real wonder of the show is the immense volume of praise and adulation that is heaped on the stuff by a great crowd of individuals of all imaginable types. This film strikes me as the most astounding portrait of some sort of mass psychosis ever made. How could all these people be so deluded. Perhaps poor Daniel Johnston would have fared better in life if his inartistic efforts had not been encouraged over the decades.
Review of The Devil and Daniel Johnston
