Critic Reviews

• Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona Republic

  It feels like a journey of self-discovery; Clayman constantly reminds us of how difficult that journey is.

• Dennis Harvey, Variety

  [An] engaging mix of diaristic, interview-based and whimsical elements.

• John DeFore, Hollywood Reporter

  Poignant and personal doc brings filmmaker's mental illness into focus.

• Gary Goldstein, Los Angeles Times

  The film brings us vividly inside the life - and head - of its determined hero, Bud Clayman, as he depicts the process of what he calls "getting normal."

• Lou Lumenick, New York Post

  Through it all, Clayman struggles to keep himself, and "OC87,'' on track - and it's easy to cheer his ultimate triumph.

• Andy Webster, New York Times

  This moving, penetrating documentary records his attempt to describe his conditions, confront them and learn to manage them.

• Kimberley Jones, Austin Chronicle

  At once a remarkable achievement, and a fatally compromised film.

• Brent Simon, Shared Darkness

  A work of advocacy, no doubt. But it transcends those parameters, and the condescension such a description connotes, connecting Clayman's struggles to the outside world in smart fashion.

• Josh Bell, Las Vegas Weekly

  Just because we hope for someone's therapy to succeed doesn't mean that we want to sit in on every session.

• Fred Topel, CraveOnline

  Illustration is the best example of his condition, and it shows that it is just that - a condition, not the defining element of his personality.

• Kam Williams, AALBC.com

  A warts-and-all biopic about a cautious, creative genius burdened by a vivid imagination apt to take superstitions like 'Step on a crack and you break your mother's back' very seriously.

• Louis Proyect, rec.arts.movies.reviews

  Stunning example of the redemptive power of art. Despite his considerable disabilities, the subject of this documentary understands what goes into a powerful film. Raw, honest, and engaging, it is the definitive account of what "madness" is about.

• Eric Monder, Film Journal International

  Insightful look into the world of the mentally disturbed-by a filmmaker who is also his own subject.

• Kalvin Henely, Slant Magazine

  A tender, painful, and frustrating work of vulnerability, and because of this in some ways deflects critical commentary.

Read all 14 critic reviews