By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.8 cats
Director: Neil Berkeley
Country: united_states
Year: 2012
Running time: 91
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2040281/
Julie says: “I loved this one. Very engaging from beginning to end, very well put together doc. Some of the art was fantastic and some I was not so crazy about Wayne White is such a character! A true artist. 5 cats”
Diane says: “I had no idea what this doc was about, only that it was recommended, and is now a Buried Treasure nom. What a delight when I read that it’s about one of the designers of ‘Pee-wee’s Playhouse!’
“This is the story of Wayne White’s artistic development. First drawing at age 3, the salad days of ‘Pee-wee,’ and his most recent work, adding words to cheap pre-existing landscapes. He covers a lot of media: giant puppets (could he possibly have made They Might Be Giants’ giant hands?), painting, illustration, movable sculpture. I found neither his aesthetic credo nor his bio compelling, and his current artwork relies a lot on the humor inherent in profanity. Not to my liking–neither the cusses nor the film. I only enjoyed revisiting the Pee-wee set and seeing its artistic predecessors and what it then inspired. 2 cats”
Julie responds: “I didn’t like his most recent work either (hated it-even though in some cases it did show an aesthetic/artistic sensibility) which it appears he’s made a lot/most ? of his money from. Other than that, I thought he was a lot of fun and walked an interesting path to where he is today. I’m intrigued by handmade articulated toys/works of art and I loved his banjo playing and his attitude. Being a collector I related to that side and it was interesting to see where he came from (i.e. a glimpse into his parent’s lives). His art friend from the past and similarity/divergence of their lives was very interesting. And of course the Pee Wee Herman history was a must to see. His wife’s story was also quite intriguing. It’s not at all bad for a doc. It kept me very engaged from beginning to end. I think I gave this one a 4.5? or maybe 4.35?”
Toni says: “This man is a buried gem…nice to see someone that has worked behind the scenes for so many years in front and with a twisted sense of humor who has transformed his craft and never quit on reshaping his talent.. 4.5 cats”
Thom says: “Wayne White is an artist/cartoonist/lecturer/designer of fine repute. Growing up in the backwoods of Tennessee White was an artist from early in his life where he was encouraged by some of his teachers & his family to pursue a career with his passion. Off he goes to New York and while he transversed a rough patch upon arrival he eventually hooked up with Paul Reubens as artistic director of the fabled PEE-WEE’S PLAYHOUSE & his fame was established. I have a special place in my heart for PEE-WEE’S PLAYHOUSE because prior to 1986, other than horse races, election returns, & the Academy Awards I watched no television whatsoever, even going so far as to pompously say it was worse than a heroin addiction, but by chance one evening I was at dinner and my hosts’ children were watching a VHS of PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE & I was instantly hooked. It took until 1990 to watch my 2nd television series with the revered TWIN PEAKS. Currently I’ve gone way overboard, but that’s getting way off the point. Needless, to say, I have a big soft spot in my heart for Wayne White for his contributions to PWP. He later went off to Hollywood where he’s had varying degrees of great success & occasional failures in both films and television with his artistic verve and style. Lately he has had success with giving lectures & his word paintings that have pithy comments imprinted on old landscapes. The film certainly doesn’t skirt the issues of success with a lovely comparison with the life of a small-town friend who’s led a quiet life back in Tennessee. His vibrant, talented, & supportive wife gets due credit. A bit too much time was spent on his young life and especially his rather dull parents. But this man’s attitude towards life is so winning and fun that I left the viewing feeling better about myself. 4 cats”
Jason says: “Wayne White seems like a nice fellow, thoroughly well-adjusted and funny without the wackiness necessarily seeming too much like a put-on. That may make Beauty Is Embarrassing a relatively unique entry in the genre of artist documentaries, which all-too-often ask the audience to believe that because someone can use a paintbrush or guitar, their substance abuse or self-centered nature is somehow interesting. Of course, this means that it’s up to White and his art to keep the audience interested, and, well, they’re nice enough.
“White is probably best known for designing the sets of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, a cramped, surreal, and wonderfully silly environment that netted him three Emmy Awards. That was twenty years ago, but he’s been keeping busy since, often with a series of words painted on found landscape paintings. He’s also worked in cartooning, puppetry, and animation.
“There’s not necessarily a lot of drama in White’s story; he started drawing at an early age, and while each step he took in his life moved him further from his Tennessee roots, he generally seems to find some measure of success and contentment in college, New York, and Los Angeles without much bitterness toward what he’s leaving behind (though it doesn’t happen overnight). Director Neil Berkeley does find a certain amount of tension there, mainly during a return home and reunion with a fellow artist who stayed there – not so much tension between them, but White seeming a little more reticent and with interview comments about the southern paternal figure being something he always rebelled against and something that makes it into his work. There are some entertaining plays on that – a scene where he dances a barefoot jig after saying nobody considered him particularly southern until he left the south which is as much a play on Yankees’ stereotypes as a swipe and the big Lyndon Johnson mascot head he and son Woodrow build plays into – but it’s worth noting that they were literally manufactured for the movie.
“That doesn’t make those themes phony, but it does suggest that their significance may be a bit exaggerated. It can sometimes be easy to say the same about his art, too, based on what we see in the movie – we’re told he’s successful and well-regarded, but there’s seldom anything much like a deep dig into it. Maybe that’s just the nature of the beast with work meant to provoke honest laughter – in fact, that’s sort of the point being made by the presentation that threads through the movie and contributes the title, that joy is just as powerful as sorrow but we don’t know what to do with it.
“The interviews are enjoyable, especially if you’re not expecting big, teary confessionals. The biggest name is probably Paul Reubens, who like many is generally complimentary of White and his work. The best moments aren’t even necessarily specific to White as an artist, such as seeing him try hard not to comment on his daughter’s painting or having his first-grade teacher arrive at an event.
“BEAUTY IS EMBARRASSING isn’t a great movie, just a good one. That’s not a judgment on Wayne White as an artist or a man; he seems to be on solid ground there. Without an extraordinary story, this movie needs amazing artwork, and White’s stuff isn’t quite in that category for me. 3.5 cats
“Seen 11 March 2013 in Jay’s Living Room (PBS Independent Lens, HD)”