The Pez Outlaw

This is one of those rare documentaries that would actually be better told as a fictional movie than a documentary. It's the story of Steve Glew who made millions of dollars smuggling Pez dispensers into the United States. Steve's story is interesting because he grew up very poor, and he discovered something which would ultimately make him wealthy, but then he got bored with doing that, and he wanted to be more creative, and then he crossed a line which he was unable to come back from. Also interesting is how Steve's nemesis is presented as this arrogant villain, but in actual fact everything that Steve was doing was technically illegal. So you feel kind of bad for him because he seems to be a sweet, good-natured individual, but on the other hand it was a completely predictable failure. So an interesting watch.

Love Pez who didn't when you was a kid but had no idea about this story. What a light hearted very entertaining re-production of this warming tale that not only stroked the chords for a plan of a master outlaw but also the importance of family at the end of it all.

The main character Steve is a quirky kook who is worth the documentary on its own. The angle of the documentary shows just how simple it was many moons ago to arbitrage the supply chain of global markets. Similar things happen today on such a smaller time scale online but back in the Wild West (in this case Eastern Europe to America) these opportunities, and greed of man would stay open a lot longer !

Sweet to the core, had to share the review just to express how much I rather enjoyed it.

This was an interesting, well-made, and entertaining documentary. My Dad was actually a collector of Pez, had all of the pre-internet pricing guides and I remember helping him look up many Pez to find out which colors were rare and worth money. This was fascinating to see an insider look at how crazy Pez collectors can get but Steve is a gem.

SIFF 2022 Watch #1.

On the surface, the story of the Pez Outlaw is interesting at the very least but by no means life changing to the average viewer. The impressive thing to me, however, is that the documentarians took this story and absolutely turned it into a masterclass of creating an engaging documentary. The whole time I was completely engaged with the story by the sheer quality of storytelling that was taking place. Although the stakes were not high at all, I was worried about what would happen next to the protagonist Steve Glew. I laughed out loud multiple times and was mesmerized by the cinematography and stock footage.

Saw this great flick at the Milwaukee Film Fest opening night, and had a chance to meet the subject (and star) after the movie.

Great job dramatizing the events, with Steve playing himself as he took on Pez USA and the meanie leader "the Pezident." Thought-provoking and very well made, this movie was touching, amusing and ultimately very satisfying.

Strongly recommended.