Tag: Documentary

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop . . . Being a Jerk?

Conan O'Brien We generally think of Conan O’Brien as the nerdy guy who was a writer for The Simpsons before getting his break as the awkward replacement for David Letterman’s late night show on NBC. We enjoyed rooting for him as his talents developed, leading him to take over the coveted Tonight Show. Then, during NBC’s decision to effectively push O’Brien out of the Tonight Show time slot after its failed experiment with Jay Leno in prime time, we were on the side of the underdog with Team Coco. The documentary, Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop (2011), which follows O’Brien on his post-NBC tour of the U.S. and Canada, shows another side of O’Brien, as a star who is kind of a jerk.

The documentary, now available on DVD and Blue-ray, gives an insider’s look at O’Brien during the tour he put together to keep himself busy during the time where he was prohibited by his NBC settlement from appearing on TV. The movie shows the somewhat slapdash nature of the tour, where the idea was followed by selling tickets before actually putting together a show. Of course, O’Brien and his crew knew he had the talent to put it all together, and the film shows a successful tour that allowed O’Brien to connect with fans from around the country.

The film also shows O’Brien behind the scenes, where in candid discussions, often while he is exhausted, he reveals that underneath the way he ended The Tonight Show in a positive way, he was understandably bitter about the way NBC treated him. O’Brien is also conflicted about his feelings, recognizing that he has been given opportunities and money way above what most people can even dream about, but his feelings are nevertheless honest.

Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop also reveals O’Brien as something besides the happy-go-lucky man portrayed on late night television. He often dishes out barbs and good-natured punches to the people who work with him, knowing that they have to take it all as part of their job without complaint. We also see another side of him as he whines about his exhausting schedule throughout.

To say he is a “jerk” might be too harsh, as the movie really just shows he is human, perhaps with an understandably larger ego than a non-celebrity but probably a lesser ego than most celebrities. There are shining moments, not the least of which is the fact that O’Brien must have approved everything in the film, and he does not hide his warts, which is refreshing. He could have made a glossy movie that only made him look good, but he went for something more honest instead.

O’Brien seems self-aware about the circus that surrounds him, as well as his good fortune. In one scene, apparently in his kitchen at home, he honestly talks about how he uses humor sometimes as a way of criticizing others. We also see that he has genuine relationships with several people besides his family. He never seems condescending to his on-screen pal Andy Richter, and the two genuinely seem to respect each other. Also, his main assistant who is featured in much of the film is a woman who enjoys the exchanges with O’Brien and seems to be one of the few who can stand up to O’Brien.

Conclusion? Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop is an entertaining documentary about a celebrity, revealing a another side of O’Brien’s life and a human side of the man. I’m still on Team Coco.


What did you think of Conan O’Brien in Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop? Leave a comment.

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    Hot Coffee (Mad Movies)

    Hot Coffee

    Hot Coffee is a new HBO documentary about how corporations used a famous legal case to push for limits on their liability under the guise of “tort reform.” Although you think you know about the McDonald’s hot-coffee-spill case, you know less about what happened than you think.

    In 1992, the 79-year-old Stella Liebeck went to McDonald’s with her grandson. After they made their purchase, the grandson pulled over the car to divide up the food and to allow Liebeck to add cream and sugar to her coffee. While removing the lid, Liebeck spilled the scalding coffee, which caused third degree burns and sent Liebeck to the hospital for eight days. After McDonald’s refused to help pay for medical expenses, Liebeck sued the company. The media reported about Liebeck winning more than two million dollars in punitive damages against McDonald’s, but that award was reduced to less than half a million dollars, and then the parties reached a settlement.

    Hot Coffee tells a lot more about the case than you probably knew, because most of us know about the case from what we heard from corporations who used the case to get states to limit individual people from suing companies for damages. After you see the photo of the Liebeck’s third-degree burns and the know that hundreds of other people were burned by the coffee, you might be glad that she sued, leading McDonald’s to lower its coffee holding temperature. And, while you may still agree that limits on damages are a good thing, you will at least question the way corporate money influenced our perceptions of the issue and also bought politicians to support tort reform.

    Overall, Hot Coffee is very informative and will open your eyes about an important issue. While it does take one side and you may disagree with some of its conclusions, its discussion of the legal cases will make you question some of your ideas. And that is always a good thing.


    “Mad Movies” (or “Movies that Make Us Mad”) is a Chimesfreedom series about movies that expose information that we might not otherwise know about, revealing misinformation, lies, and hidden stories that make us angry.

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    Dear Zachary (Missed Movies)

    Cover of "Dear Zachary:A Letter to a Son ...
    Cover via Amazon

    Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father
     (2008) is a moving documentary that filmmaker Kurt Kuenne made after his friend Andrew Bagby was murdered.  More than anything, the film is a tribute to his friend.

    Dear Zachary explores how one person may touch many others and how one tragedy connects to loved ones.  The film does address the solving of the crime.  But the movie is not a prolonged mystery, although it does follow the quest for some sense of justice.

    Much of the drama of the film, though, comes from attempts to return the alleged perpetrator to the United States from Canada.  And then, there is a twist. Bagby’s friends and family learn that he left behind a son, who is the Zachary in the title.

    The film then becomes an attempt to tell the son about the father he will never know. Much of the movie focuses on Bagby’s parents.  It recounts how they have dealt with losing their only child.  Their agony is genuine throughout the movie, as they face additional hurdles and heartbreak.

    My one criticism of the movie is that it over-simplifies the legal issues involved in the attempts to extradite the alleged perpetrator.  The movie makes an argument that Canada needs to reform its bail system. And it argues for an automatic rule that might not work in all cases.

    While it is true that the system did not work in this case, the failures may have been more from the actors in the system than the system itself.  It was fairly clear that the woman who killed Bagby was mentally ill.  And the movie only briefly notes her psychiatrist’s misconduct that led to her release. Thus, the movie ignores part of the problem with the system.  It also avoids the question of whether putting more potentially innocent people in jail is the solution.

    Along these lines, the movie may attempt too much by tacking on a political statement that the filmmaker is not willing to fully explore.  But it is an understandable oversight in light of the personal story.

    The movie’s appearance and lighting reveal that the film is not an expensive Hollywood vehicle.  But it is compelling and a good story.

    Although the movie goes in some different directions, those directions are driven by the narrative of real events.  The film is a very good documentary about the tragedies that befall when individuals die too soon.  And it reminds us of the love that can live on after their deaths.

    {Missed Movies is our continuing series on good films you might have missed because they did not receive the recognition they deserved when released.}

    If you have already seen Dear Zachary, head over to the movie’s website for an update.  If you have not yet seen the movie, wait until after you see it before checking out the update, which contains spoilers.

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    Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer

    Client 9: Rise and Fall of Eliot SpitzerThe documentary Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer (2010) is a fascinating portrayal of the former New York governor and his downfall. The movie follows Spitzer’s fast rise from a state attorney general heralded as “the sheriff of Wall Street” through his presidential aspirations to his even faster fall following the discovery of his use of prostitutes.

    Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer, directed by Alex Gibney and now available on Blu-ray and DVD, does an excellent job of showing all sides of the story, featuring interviews with Spitzer as well as with several of Spitzer’s enemies. The story gives one a new perspective on the major players. Among other revelations, one learns that the woman featured in multiple covers of New York tabloids and interviewed by Diane Sawyer had only one encounter with Spitzer. As a result of the media attention, she is now a columnist for the New York Post, while the actual woman who met Spitzer frequently avoids the spotlight.

    The story of a powerful man who falls has been around for ages. In a famous quote from the Bible, Jesus asked a question that one might recall while watching Client 9: “And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?” The movie reveals that the beam in Spitzer’s eye included his hubris and pride, which led him to make numerous enemies and few trusted friends. While Spitzer admits he caused his own descent, and that is true, his downfall is much more complicated. Some of the people who had past run-ins with Spitzer — including legislators and those he prosecuted as Attorney General — played interesting roles in the drama.

    Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer does not let Spitzer off the hook, but it also portrays the man and the scandal in its complexity. Spitzer, who now has his own television show on CNN and who may eventually return to politics to run for mayor of New York City, was one of the first leaders to reveal the problems on Wall Street that later led to the most recent recession. But he lacked empathy in his encounters with other people. He was a man who was driven to reform government because he saw the flaws in others, but who then fell because he could not see the flaws in himself.

    Has Spitzer learned from his mistakes and become more humble? What do you think? Leave a comment?

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