I think the last time I wrote about Charles Bukowski was with the release of the 1987 film “Barfly,” which he wrote. That was a dizzy, lyrical look at the youth of the boozy writer, with Mickey Rourke having his finest hour in the lead role.
Bukowski died in 1994 – amazingly, not from alcoholism but leukemia. He left behind a hefty stack of poems, novels and nonfiction writing. His underground following (and above-ground following) is so loyal, there have already been a handful of documentary films detailing aspects of his life.
“Bukowski: Born Into This” attempts to be authoritative. Director John Dullaghan interviews friends of fans of the writer, and culls footage from pre-existing films about Bukowski.
It gets off to a worrisome start. Clips of Bukowski – a growling, pot-bellied, balding figure – reading his work in public gives a glimpse of the off-putting idolatry his passionate fans carry around. Every phrase, witty or not, is received with hoots and laughter, the kind of self-congratulatory thing you tend to hear from audiences at book readings. Bukowski laps it up.
As the biography emerges, however, “Born Into This” begins to engross. Bukowski’s early life was marked by abuse and a case of disfiguring acne. For the cameras, he returns to the Los Angeles home he refers to as a “house of horrors” and calmly stands in the bathroom, describing the weekly beatings he absorbed from this father.
For years, Bukowski worked at the post office while he gained a reputation, however obscure, as a poet and an essayist. He also built a reputation as a brawler and a person you wouldn’t want to live next to in a rooming house.
In January 1970 Bukowski quit the post office, taking an offer from a fledgling publisher named John Martin, who promised to pay Bukowski a monthly stipend if he would devote himself to writing. That was the beginning of Bukowski’s greatest literary success.
Dullaghan uses footage of Bukowski from films by Taylor Hackford (who later made “An Officer and Gentleman”) and Barbet Schroeder (the director of “Barfly”), and interviews both men. Maybe the most startling moment has Bukowski, in his cups, physically scuffling with wife Linda.
Linda stuck with him to the end, and contributes to the interviews. Also on camera are Bukowski fans Sean Penn and Bono. Toward the end of his life, Bukowski got a kick out of being introduced at a U2 concert.
This is not a worshipful portrait. It would be easy to paint Bukowski as a romantically debauched underground figure, but you also see the brute and the womanizer (he greedily enjoyed groupies after fame hit). But no doubt about it, he was also painfully sensitive. And none of the colorful life anecdotes would be of interest to us unless the guy could write – and there’s enough of his work in the film to prove that.
“Bukowski: Born Into This” HHH
Engrossing: Documentary about boozy underground writer Charles Bukowski, utilizing past movies of Bukowski in interviews and readings. His violent, colorful life is foregrounded, but there’s enough of the work included to prove that the guy really could write.
Rated: Not rated; probably R for language.
Now showing: Varsity.
“Bukowski: Born Into This” HHH
Engrossing: Documentary about boozy underground writer Charles Bukowski, utilizing past movies of Bukowski in interviews and readings. His violent, colorful life is foregrounded, but there’s enough of the work included to prove that the guy really could write.
Rated: Not rated; probably R for language.
Now showing: Varsity.
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