‘Pee-Wee As Himself’ Review: A Complicated & Layered Portrait Of Identity Battles For Narrative Control

Pee-wee Herman’s Paul Reubens confirms his sexuality in new film following his death

Pee-wee as Himself. The interviews ended when Reubens objected to some of the topics Wolf brought up. However, just before dying from cancer in July 2023, aged 70, Reubens reached out again. He left Wolf a final voice message just the day before he died.In the documentary, Reubens talks freely about being gay: a fact he refused to discuss with the press while alive. In fact, he sometimes appeared in paparazzi photos with a female friend, actress…

Pee-wee as Himself, a New Documentary Series About Pee-wee Herman

Before he died in 2023, Paul Reubens conducted 40 hours of interviews about his life and career with filmmaker Matt Wolf. These interview form the backbone of Wolf’s two-part documentary series Pee-wee as Himself. The series recently premiered at Sundance and there’s no trailer yet, but Variety has an overview and review. Reubens is a compelling enough figure to carry a straightforward bio-doc, and over its substantial length, Wolf’s two-part fi…

‘Pee-Wee As Himself’ Review: A Complicated & Layered Portrait Of Identity Battles For Narrative Control

When is a documentary portrait not a conventional documentary portrait? Well, it certainly doesn’t hurt when you’re relentlessly battling for narrative control with your subject throughout and are engaged in a passive-aggressive tug-of-war for dominance. That’s the extra layer of friction that adds a great level of tension to the already-absorbing two-part documentary “Pee-Wee As Himself” about the late Paul Reubens, aka the beloved Pee-Wee Herm…

‘Pee-Wee As Himself’ Review:  A Complicated & Layered Portrait Of Identity Battles For Narrative Control

When is a documentary portrait not a conventional documentary portrait? Well, it certainly doesn’t hurt when you’re relentlessly battling for narrative control with your subject throughout and are engaged in a passive-aggressive tug-of-war for dominance. That’s the extra layer of friction that adds a great level of tension to the already-absorbing two-part documentary “Pee-Wee As Himself” about the late Paul Reubens, aka the beloved Pee-Wee Herm…

Pee-wee as Himself: The Posthumous Rise of the Larger-Than-Life Persona - SLUG Magazine

With somber interjections from Paul Reubens himself, the audience discovers the muddier side to fame as he struggles with his lonely, closeted sexuality. … read more The post Pee-wee as Himself: The Posthumous Rise of the Larger-Than-Life Persona first appeared on SLUG Magazine.