American Juggalo

I really don't know much about ICP or Juggalos other than the names and the general look etc of the people when they are face-painted up etc so I was interested to see this documentary. The focus here is not Insane Clown Posse themselves (indeed unless that music far in the background of the woods was them, then they're not in this film at all) but rather then fans of the band – the self-styled Juggalos of the title. The camera just lets the people talk to the camera, there doesn't seem to be any trickery, traps or unfair editing in here. I guess one could argue that some of the people are really messed up and speaking to the camera from a drunken state (at least) but I don't think the film took advantage of this at all.

The end result is a film that will appeal (in some form) to all viewers. To those into this sub-culture, it will be like seeing old friends and no doubt will be whoop-whooping at the similar people they see. The theme of family and "being home" is throughout the film and in a way it is good that the film allows that to be shown and for sure if there was trouble or violence then it didn't make it into the film. On the other hand though, this same honesty with the camera allows the subjects to hang themselves by their own words. As a result the group show themselves to really be deliberately and self-destructively "out there". It is nice to say "I don't give a f about anything" but hard not to want to step in when people talking about urgently needing liver transplants (but still chugging on beers), or a 6-month pregnant woman smoking and speaking about wanting to raise her baby in this family (a family not even bothering to point out the damage she is doing to that baby before it even sees sunlight). Of course idiots like this exist in all walks of life but the film really lets us see a very high concentration of them here.

We hear people talk about brain surgeons being at the gathering, but we never see any. The people who describe themselves as "straight laced" to show how varied the culture is, well they are still covered in tats, speak like they are in a gang and have piercings everywhere. Okay this does not make them lesser people, but you have to wonder. Likewise, to hear a woman discussing how people judge her and don't help her but that she gets support and love from her family – but yet telling this story with the use of "mother-f'er" every other word, it does make one wonder whether or not she would be willing to at least take a step towards a middle ground, so by all means be heavily tattooed but perhaps not use swearing more frequently than the words "the" or "and"?

American Juggalo is a great film; depending on your view it will be because it honestly shows the Gathering in all its glory or because it honestly shows the Gathering in all its social horror. Personally I was stunned by the people, their attitudes and how they universally complain about being treated like outsiders while simultaneously kicking others away with both feet.

For the 20+ minute running time of American Juggalo you're instantly and consistently given the same type of joys you took in the first time you laid eyes on Heavy Metal Parking Lot. Honestly, I was laughing my ass of within the first minute.

If you're not in the loop, a Juggalo is the term for a die-hard fan of Insane Clown Posse. I'm not here to tell you about ICP so do your own homework on that front, but I would like to say that I think they get too much flack because of their looks. I haven't listened to so much of their music, but from what I have heard, I thought was pretty cool and different. The Dating Game is a track I'll never forget.

Back to the movie! On the film-making front, American Juggalo takes the same approach as Heavy Metal Parking Lot - you only witness the fans interacting with each other and the film-makers. There isn't a single moment of ICP performing, and actually, I don't think I even heard a ICP song being played. Nevertheless, even though I would have love to see the fans freaking the hell out at a concert, just hearing these people chit-chat and mingle with one another....it's just nuts. It's like nothing you've seen before.

Chock full of make-up, tits, excessive swearing, flabby bodies, this flick is the truth. This flick has got all the exploits and laughs you'd hope it would have, but at the end of the story, you come away with one lingering thought more so than anything else. The Juggalo family is more hardcore than any other music family out there. They're legit, hardcore, ridiculous, and they're all about the scene to a level that verges on insane. It truly is an insane clown posse. Whoop whoop!!

For more ICP goodness check out A Family Underground, and Shockumentary.

Juggalos and Juggalettes have been a frequently mocked and belittled counterculture, so much so that they'd have to seriously believe in themselves, the strength of their own community, and their values to continue being a part of such a group of people. Sean Dunne's short documentary American Juggalo is a mesmerizing film, featuring one unique individual after another, all a part of the annual Gathering of the Juggalos. The Gathering is a beloved festival for all the fans of Insane Clown Posse and other members of Psychopathic Records, but above all, it's about connecting and sharing a bond with like-minded individuals. These individuals love to drink, smoke marijuana, but ultimately, love the human connection that comes with difference and embracing a different lifestyle.

American Juggalo is a necessary humanization, or, at the very least, profiling of a culture that has had more negative words and mockery exchanged by them than any other fanatical group I can think of at the moment. Dunne ostensibly glides his camera through the Gathering, stopping it when he sees an intriguing group of people (how he decided who to profile is beyond me). He gathers insight and ideas about the Juggalo culture, the sense of community and family they preach, and how they want to be portrayed before letting them go on their merry way. This allows for a deeply intimate portrayal, with little in the way of structure or approach intruding on letting those involved with the culture getting their message out.

This is the kind of documentary Harmony Korine would make if he made documentaries. Juggalo culture, while easy to criticize, is made all the more fascinating given how strongly unified these people feel with one another. One couple brought their very young children to the Gathering, and while one may reasonably say the music and the environment's activities are too brash for them, the idealism and sort of unity that penetrates the Gathering are fundamental ideas we (should) learn growing up. Another guy fondly recalls vomiting all over the place and mellows out with the help of a cigarette. These are the kinds of people we can't make up or shortchange; they're too real to even fabricate.

American Juggalo is only twenty-four minutes, but its mesmerizing effect on the viewer and pulsating direction and focus make it have the impact of a full-length film. This is one of the rare shorts I'm universally recommending, to all people, anti-Juggalo, proud Juggalo, or those who don't even know what to make of Juggalo culture. This one's for you.

Directed by: Sean Dunne.