American Splendor (2003) combines interviews, archival footage, and fiction into a wonderfully cohesive and brilliant biopic that keenly observes an artist’s relation to his creations. Simultaneously, the movie turns a watchful eye to the goals and pursuits of blue collar America and the strive for individualization and self-definition in the face of inevitable mortality. And, in doing so, manages to create a bittersweet, poignant piece of art.
American Splendor tells the story of file-clerk Harvey Pekar (Paul Giamatti) who, in the mid-70s, began to write comics about himself and his life as a blue-collar citizen in Cleveland. (As I am only briefly familiar with the comics and their author, I will have to base my comments on the movie’s portrayal.) Harvey is a unique character with an interesting and often gloomy perspective of events around him; he describes his perspective as “gloom and doom.” Paul Giamatti does a wonderful job in his portrayal of Harvey Pekar, capturing his unique tics and vocal patterns almost to a T. Likewise, the supporting cast all play their parts strongly, which is a huge accomplishment given that many of the people surrounding Harvey have their own individual neurosis. The actors really bring the characters to life and it is great to see them next to their real-life counterparts.
However, where American Splendor truly shines is in its loving, unique construction, which brings the comic-book nature of the story to life. The movie cleverly combines voice over narration and interview with Harvey into the depiction of his life by Paul Giamatti. Borders between real and narrative often are often narrow, such as during Harvey’s visits to Letterman, where the movie seamlessly combines archival footage of the interviews with Giamatti-played-Harvey preparing backstage. It is fantastic to see a movie that has been so passionately put together, but in the case of American Splendor such constructions are not simply flourishes, but reflects the nature of Harvey’s comic, where he stands as both character and creator, trapped between reality and his own construction.
And that is perhaps getting at the true point of American Splendor: art is not something aloof and impossible to reach, saved for some, but denied to others. Instead, it is created from turning a watchful eye on that which is often ignored. Harvey is what many people would call a normal guy, but by paying undue attention to the world around him he creates a relatable art form, which addresses the painful realities faces by a myriad of people. Alone, cynical and depressed, Harvey writes something that is immediately relatable to anyone trapped in a monotonous existence. The movie doesn’t turn away from this pain, but lets it breathe and in doing so finds the beauty underneath the monotony that Harvey found. “It’s certainly not your Hollywood happy ending… but it’s pretty truthful, which is rare these days” as one of Harvey’s acquaintances so accurately put it.
Harvey is a man trying to find meaning in his life, to carve out his niche and find his American dream. His existence is blue collar and drab, but there’s a relatable beauty hidden under the brush, which Harvey is able to nuance out in his comic and is now captured in a masterful film. We are each searching for our American splendor, that reason we wake up everyday and put up with the pains of life, those bittersweet moments that reveal to us the beauty of life. American Splendor captures all of these feelings and we are left with a question that Harvey asked himself: “If I die, will the character keep going? Or will he just fade away?”
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