Comic Book Confidential

Comic Book Confidential
1988
Directed By Ron Mann



SYNOPSIS

The history of the comic book is tackled by this documentary... from its roots in the 1930's, to the juvenile delinquency scares of the 50's... to the 60's underground scene and beyond.

MY THOUGHTS

Comic Book Confidential is about making a case for the comic book as a true and respected art-form... and it succeeds.

The film does feel incomplete... but how can you fit every little detail from 50+ years (at the time of the film's release) of history into under 90 minutes?

The early days of comics are glossed over somewhat. The creators of Superman and Batman were still alive in the late 1980's and would have been great to see interviewed, but are not.

The segment on EC Comics and their struggles with the censors in the 1950's was covered much better and more in-depth in Tales From The Crypt: From Comic Books To Television.

The film focused much of its energy on the underground scene from the 60's to the 80's. I knew much of the "above-ground" history of comic books, so it was great to see and learn about the underground., which I knew little of apart from some people like Robert Crumb and Harvey Pekar.

'Confidential' has writers/creators from all eras read some of their work aloud, accompanied with some limited animation. This is unique, and it's great to see legends like Will Eisner and Stan Lee reading their work but after the 6th or 7th time it gets old... especially from some underground artists I've never heard of and will likely never read.

The history of comic books would probably be better suited to a Ken Burns-style long form documentary... but Comic Book Confidential gives a brief and entertaining look at several highlights through the years.