Blogorium Review: I'm Still Here

This is a difficult review to write. Had I seen I'm Still Here before director Casey Affleck admitted his documentary about Joaquin Phoenix's retirement from acting and subsequent pursuit of a career in hip hop was not, in fact, a documentary, but rather a "performance" by Phoenix, I might have taken the film on the merits it presents. I'm Still Here claims to be a documentary (Phoenix refers specifically to what Affleck is film as "documenting" his life, and the word documentary is spoken repeatedly by the director, actor, and friends), and early reviews were mixed between "it's real," "it's staged", and "I'm not sure."

The quotes on I'm Still Here's DVD and Blu-Ray cover are, I believe, from the period before Affleck cleared the air, which makes the back cover all the more interesting. Now on home video, the paragraph describing the film refers to I'm Still Here as a "unique and groundbreaking experimental project," and refers to Joaquin Phoenix's "performance." The other clear giveaway is a logo next to the rating crediting the film to "They Are Going to Kill Us" Productions. The artifice is clear and on display, so I'm left with two choices: review the film under the "I knew it all along" guise, or take Affleck and Phoenix at their word and review I'm Still Here as an experimental film. I choose the latter.

Joaquin Phoenix (Joaquin Phoenix) is an actor known for his moody, introspective performances in films like Gladiator and Walk the Line, but in 2008, after finishing the film Two Lovers, he decides that he's tired of acting and announces his retirement. Phoenix begins writing, recording, and performing hip hop as "JP," with the assistance of his friends Anton (Antony Langdon) and Larry (Larry McHale), while his brother-in-law Casey Affleck (Casey Affleck) documents his transition.

Phoenix seeks assistance from Diddy (Sean Combs) in producing his music, which isn't exactly rap, but is closer to half-mumbled ramblings that sometimes rhyme, while informing other actors of his decision and asking for advice. Ben Stiller (Ben Stiller) tries to talk Phoenix into taking a supporting role in Greenberg; Edward James Olmos offers words of wisdom that Phoenix attempts (unsuccessfully) to impart to Anton and Larry, but much of the film follows JP as he performs in Miami, Las Vegas, and in Los Angeles while trying to meet with Diddy. In the meantime, he does coke, orders prostitutes, sleeps through the Obama inauguration, and berates Anton and Larry, embarrassing them and accusing Anton of feeding the media stories that his retirement is a hoax.

I'm Still Here directly addresses the "is it or isn't it real" aspect on more than one occasion, insisting that this is Joaquin Phoenix's real life, a component of the film blurred by the fact that almost everyone in the film uses their real name, is identified in their own actual profession, and at least with the David Letterman appearance (featured in full during the movie, but also on CBS and presumably YouTube), Letterman wasn't "in" on the film, whereas Stiller, Combs, Olmos, Mos Def, Natalie Portman, and a host of other celebrities were very aware that Phoenix's "strange behavior" was part of a broader, Andy Kaufman-esque performance piece.

And it makes sense that Phoenix and Affleck chose David Letterman, as the Late Show has hosted its share of uncomfortable "performances" from the likes of Kaufman, Crispin Glover, and Bill Murray over the years. The show has a precedent that suits what they were trying to do with I'm Still Here, and why Letterman wasn't part of the performance, his ease in dealing with "difficult" interviews give Affleck and Phoenix exactly the moment they need late in the film, culminating in a breakdown of Joaquin Phoenix the character on the side of the road.

It's tricky navigating the performances when audiences are - theoretically - expected to separate the real Joaquin Phoenix from the character presented to us with his name, back story, and acting credentials. As a performance, Phoenix is at the top of his game, and as the film becomes increasingly uncomfortable, he grounds it with moments that seem genuine (which I have to presume is the goal): the nervous way that JP struggles with what to call Diddy on the ride to his Miami home, his glee in torturing Larry and Anton, a moment where he can't open an exit door at the Two Lovers premiere all ground the ridiculous outbursts and indulgent "bits" in the film - particularly the sequence with Ben Stiller about Greenberg that exists only to set up Stiller's appearance at the 2009 Academy Awards as "Joaquin Phoenix," something that JP watches but doesn't seem to react to on-camera.

Other moments, like Anton shitting on Phoenix's face as he sleeps (an act of frustration), a post-performance vomit, and home video footage of the Phoenix children were all staged in varying degrees, and an 11th hour visit to "Panama" (actually Hawaii) to visit Phoenix's father (actually Affleck's father) ties the film to the beginning, and have some degree of verisimilitude until the credits roll. Even in trying to describe I'm Still Here as a film, it's difficult to review it without pointing out more glaring "staged" moments, in part because it's nearly impossible to disentangle the "experimental" components from the expressed statement "this is a documentary" and insistence within the film that everything is real.

While I've written in the past about Judd Apatow-related films having "Fake-umentaries," I'm Still Here wouldn't qualify as that, just as it wouldn't necessarily be a mockumentary like This is Spinal Tap or Best in Show. Both types of faux-documentaries rely on something explicitly false in their premise - Superbad's "Everyone Hates Michael Cera" or "Directing the Director" push an already loose concept into the realm of totally unbelievable, while Spinal Tap later began to blend the "fake" band with the real world by touring, I'm Still Here is predicated by actual media coverage of Phoenix's "announcement," YouTube footage of his "shows," and a precedent of entering the zeitgeist prior to the film's release. We were sold a bill of goods prior to I'm Still Here that suggested dubious motives but was otherwise insisted upon as authentic.

I'm Still Here is fascinating, even if I have trouble doing it justice in a review. As a deliberate piece of performance art, it captures a series of real and staged events in a compelling, disturbing way, and kept me engaged for the entire run time. Instead of looking for the seams, as I worried I might, the tale of Joaquin Phoenix's transition to JP and descent into creative hell is nevertheless well worth the telling.