Crumbs of a Soul

     I just finished watching the new Signs and Wonders entry. It was a documentary on a man named Art Crumb, a rather disturbed individual. The film managed to be disturbing (I felt a little sick watching parts of it), totally weird, depressing, and somehow, a little fascinating. The guy is obviously not well upstairs. I can't even begin to describe Mr. Crumb and I probably wouldn't do a good job if I did.
     The film centers around his artwork, which is both superbly done and incredibly exploitative. I mean, good grief the guy is messed up. They say art can be an expression of the soul, and if that's true, we see some very disturbing parts of Crumb's soul. I will say this though: Given the fact that I saw much of Crumb's back-story, it was easier to look at him as a broken piece of God's masterwork instead of just a weird nut. It was the same reaction I had to Matthew Poncelet from Dead Man Walking. Initial revulsion gives way to seeing the big tragic picture of a broken man.
     I will also say, however, watch this at your own risk. The damaged soul of a person is actually much less interesting to watch when it's of a real person rather than a screen character. Seeing it for real is much more disturbing.