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Movie: Gigantic - A Tale Of Two Johns
Starring They Might Be Giants (John Flansburgh and John Linnell)
Directed by AJ Schnack (Bonfire Films Of America)
Reviewed by Rusty Pipes
They Might Be Giants? After seeing AJ Schnack's documentary on John and John and their brand of bouncily intellectual, replete-with-killer-hooks music there won't be any question in your mind, Flansburgh and Linnell ARE Giants.
Schnack immediately sets the right tone for the production with an introduction of the band by Senator Paul Simon, the former presidential candidate with the lovely deep voice and a bow tie, who talks of the band's roots in the Land Of Lincoln. The film then quickly moves into lots of meaty performance footage and commentary. Interesting trivia is revealed in every sequence, like the fact that they wrote the theme for both Malcolm In The Middle and John Stewart's The Daily Show (there's a bit of Stewart's interview from the show too). The most unexpected clip was a rendition of "Birdhouse" with Doc Severinsen on the Tonight Show, but Gigantic also features all kinds of early performances in tiny little New York clubs, the MTV videos, Flansburgh recording a Dial-A-Song into an answering machine and there's even a record store performance from the night before 9/11.
Bolstering the performances are interviews with Flansburgh and Linnell and dozens of other people that TMBG has touched. Prominently featured are Harry Shearer, Mike McKean and Janeane Garofalo who all give readings of lyrics; This American Life's Ira Glass; there's fellow performers Frank Black and Syd Straw on working with them in the early days, plus industry people, band members and writers of all sorts telling how they've made TMBG a part of their lives.
The two Johns' work is nigh impossible to categorize, but AJ Schnack's film does a fantastic job communicating their whimsically endearing kind of idiosyncrasy. Gigantic is a pure delight, start to finish. If you weren't a fan of the band before, you will be when you come out of the theater.
The Skinny:
Am I glad I saw the film? Absolutely
Would I go to see it again? I'm already a TMBG fan; this will hit the DVD collection.
© 2003 - Rusty Pipes