Gigantic (A Tale of Two Johns) (2002)

Documentary about the music group They Might Be Giants.

Director:

AJ Schnack

Stars:

John Flansburgh, John Linnell, Gina Arnold

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
John Flansburgh	...	Himself
John Linnell	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gina Arnold	...	Herself
Michael Azerrad	...	Himself
Adam Bernstein	...	Himself
David Bither	...	Himself
Frank Black	...	Himself
Linwood Boomer	...	Himself
Brian Cohen	...	Himself
Patrick Dillett	...	Himself (as Pat Dillett)
Sue Drew	...	Herself
Dave Eggers	...	Himself
Jake Fogelnest	...	Himself
Joe Franklin	...	Himself
Janeane Garofalo	...	Herself

Storyline

Gigantic is the story of They Might Be Giants, a unique musical group centered on John Flansburgh and John Linnell. We're introduced to the duo's lyrical and melodic craft when, for example, well-known actors recite Giants lyrics, underscoring the dark words often coupled with bright tunes. We also catch a glimpse of the band's ideas about performance from the blend of footage from concerts, television, music videos, and other media. Running through the whole film is a portrayal of the Johns' friendship and ultimately, their view of the world, which we see in interviews with the Giants themselves, their colleagues, and their fans.

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Plot Keywords:

band | interview | music video | six word title | parenthesis in title | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Details

Official Sites:

They Might Be Giants Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

10 March 2002 (USA)

Also Known As:

Гиганты: История двух Джонов

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$6,411, 26 May 2003

Gross USA:

$160,621

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bonfire Films of America

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

Annette O'Toole narrates a letter in the film during one of the film's "history" sequences, and did the research herself. She had been out of town filming Smallville (2001) when the director came to film her husband, Michael McKean.

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Quotes

John Linnell: We ARE the shitty Beatles.

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Connections

References Madonna: Truth or Dare (1991)

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Soundtracks

Cowtown
Written by John Linnell and John Flansburgh
Performed by They Might Be Giants

User Reviews

Loved Gigantic

I am a TMBG fan, so take this review with a grain of salt, but I found the previous diatribe about this fine and amusing documentary repugnant and wanted to offer an alternative to the slam posted by littlesiddie.

To say that TMBG's career is 'flagging' is simply ignorant, as the documentary itself points out many instances of their music being used in contemporary circumstances, such as 'Malcolm in the Middle' and the PBS specials.

TMBG are witty and on point most of the time. The movie reflects this. Their music continues to be high quality after twenty years, and they are still quite entertaining. The documentary gives a lot of background info for TMBG fans which fills the void of history for those of us who came across them later, yet still stands on its own as a documentary for those who are unfamiliar with their work.

The movie, as a whole, is entertaining for fans, and enticing for novices. I would suspect that many of those who have not been exposed to this group may wish to purchase their music after being exposed to them on the screen.

Of course, if one is a dolt, or otherwise slow-witted, this movie will be somewhat tedious, as most of the higher humor will go right over the viewers' head. On the other hand, for those with higher linguistic skills who appreciate puns and other plays on words, this will be a wonderful introduction to an amazingly talented band which has delighted fans for the last twenty years with a sly and sharp sense of the absurd.

I would recommend this movie to almost anyone. The worst that might happen is that (like littlesiddie) they just won't get it.