HARMONTOWN (Neil Berkeley). 101 minutes. Opens Friday (October 3) at the Bloor Hot Docs Cinema. For venues and times, see Movies. Rating: NNNNN
When he was fired as the showrunner of NBC’s Community, Dan Harmon channelled his rage and passion into a weekly stage show with his friends in the back room of an L.A. comic book store. The show became a podcast, the podcast went on a 20-city tour, and director Neil Berkeley came along to record it.
Notoriously difficult to work with – he’s been fired from almost every gig he’s ever had – but harder on himself than anyone else, Harmon is a self-described “functioning alcoholic” whose need for validation is matched by his insistence on casting himself as the villain of his own life. As such, he’s become a beacon for misfits who feel his social alienation mirrors their own inability to interact with others.
Harmontown places its subject under the microscope as he’s accompanied onstage by (and locked in a tour bus with) girlfriend Erin McGathy, friend and sidekick Jeff Davis and fan-turned-dungeon-master Spencer Crittenden, all of whom defend him lovingly while acknowledging – and dealing with – his hair-trigger emotions and self-loathing.
The result is a riveting, brutally honest and hysterically funny examination of a unique creative talent. Also, there’s some great Dungeons & Dragons gameplay.
Harmon will be in attendance for Q&As after the Friday and Saturday (October 3 and 4) screenings, and the Bloor will host a live recording of the Harmontown podcast Saturday at 9 pm with Harmon and special guest Bobcat Goldthwait. Separate admissions for events.
Read our profile of Dan Harmon, published in April, here.
