Winnebago Man (2010)

Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay

if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

The acting in this movie is really good.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Ben Steinbauer has been one of the many fans of the bootleg outtakes on VHS tapes of a Winnebago industrial promotional film. He is obsessed with the angry Jack Rebney swearing his way through the filming. Jack seems to be a tough man to find until Ben finds him as a zen-like caretaker of a remote fishing camp in northern California. Later, Jack reveals his true foul-mouthed angry old guy persona as Ben convinces him to meet his fans.I didn't see the found footage tapes before this movie. After watching this film, I watched the footage and can see why it has gathered such a cult following. It's hilarious. The non-stop flow of expletives builds to a funny short. His angry tirades just keep coming. As for this documentary, it takes that tape and does the expected route of tracking Jack down. He doesn't disappoint. He's a grumpy old man and everybody knows at least one in real life. He has a quaint charm and one can't hate on the old guy going blind. Although the narrations could be cut back.

The filmmakers behind "Winnebago Man" have crafted a thoughtful, entertaining, and engrossing piece of documentary journalism. I had never seen the internet clip of Jack Rebney but I was hooked in the first five minutes of this movie. The director leads the viewers through his quest to find "the angriest man in the world" and the pay-off is well worth the ride. I can't say enough good about this documentary and just when you fear that the ending may turn out to be distasteful and unsettling the tide turns and you see a side to Jack that makes the entire viewing experience memorable.My only frustration with this review is that there are only ten stars available--it deserved higher. In an age when Hollywood screenwriters seem nearly unable to write a decent script with a satisfying ending, this documentary sets the bar high.A trip with this Winnebago man is well worth the effort!

This film petered off about 30 minutes into it. That isn't the worst thing about the movie. That would have to be the Director of the movie. But, I'm getting ahead of myself.This film begins like most documentaries, by giving some context. We are given a short history of Viral Videos and a little info about the Director's experience's watching the Winnebago Man in his youth. This was all very interesting and put together in a not glorious, but sustainable fashion. The Director spends some time looking into how to get in touch with the Winnebago Man, and is unsuccessful at first. We do get to meet the crew which was around during the shoot, which is probably the best part of the movie. Later we see the Winnebago Man and he gives a dishonest view of his opinion of his fame.Its at this point the film heads south. We are treated to another hour of psycho babble (and drama) about the Winnebago Man by the Director. The worst part is the way it is so transparent the Director is trying to use his subject to help out the film instead of trying to document the Winnebago Man as he is. Its kind of funny that he mentions that he taught a class in Austin (which would explain the lack of good films from there).The climax of the film is the Winnebago Man speaking at some "hip" SF show, which shows viral videos. I'm guessing nobody told any of these hipsters about Youtube, as they watch reruns from "America's Funniest Home Videos." At this point the Winnebago Man and his gay counterpart (a character I willfully forgot to mention), go and get some wine from some chic bar and the film shortly ends afterward.This film isn't terrible, its just not very good. The way the Director forces himself into scenes and acts dishonestly towards the audience leaves one with a sense of discomfort. It would have helped if the Director looked at more accomplished film makers like Werner Herzog and tried to make the film in that same vein. Instead we are treated with 90 minutes which gives little more satisfaction than watching a 1 minute viral video.

For many years, I've been entertained by the video I know as "The Angriest Man in the World," featuring a frustrated Winnebago salesman melting down during the hot summertime shoot for a promotional film. Originally distributed via VHS swaps and later disseminated on YouTube, the video comprising obscenity-laden out-takes is filled with quotable dialogue and deliriously funny meltdowns. When I had the pleasure of catching this doc about the video and its star during a sneak last night in LA, I expected little more than a quick and pithy revelation of the man behind the mad. However I was thrilled to discover a thoughtful, provocative, and even quite moving study of what it means to become an unintentional celebrity. The narrative surprises of this film are better discovered than discussed, but suffice it to say that Ben Steinbauer's utterly compelling and utterly hilarious doc should shoot to the top of your must- see list if it hits a festival near you. And while the movie provides unadulterated joy for those who have already joined the cult of Jack Rebney -- the Winnebago Man himself -- I'm confident that anyone interested in serious explorations of pop culture will be fascinated.