Like last year's much-ballyhooed Crumb, The Line King (cue parents around the country patiently explaining "No, this is different, it's some sort of docu, it's not the, you've already got that tape, why do you need to, no, it's...") is a documentary about a guy who draws what might uncharitably be called cartoons--both comics and caricatures are often incorrectly labeled as such--and who has gradually made the transition from struggling artist to cultural icon. Where Crumb was a disturbing, provocative exploration of the thin line between creativity and madness, however, The Line King is a reasonably engaging puff piece profiling a man who seems to have no inner demons to speak of: Al Hirschfeld, the caricature artist whose unique, curvy, instantly recognizable illustrations of scenes from Broadway and off-Broadway shows have been appearing in the New York Times' pages since time immemorial. Hirschfeld is now 93 years old, and since he began drawing theatrical caricatures professionally as a very young man, the film is more than just a history of his life -- it's a de facto history of the New York stage in this century, and a fascinating one. Recommended. (M. D'Angelo)[DVD Review--July 13, 2004--Home Vision, 86 min., not rated, $24.95--Making its debut on DVD, 1996's The Line King sports a solid transfer and good Dolby Digital 2.0 sound, as well as a pair of nice extras: an eight-minute featurette of Hirschfeld at 99 drawing Paul Newman, and a gallery of 19 caricatures (including Aerosmith, the Marx Bros., and a pair of self-portraits). Bottom line: a solid profile that is well worth picking up on DVD.]
The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story
(Cabin Fever, 86 min., not rated, avail. Dec. 2, $24.98) Vol. 12, Issue 6
The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story
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As of March 2022, Video Librarian has changed from a four-star rating system to a five-star one. This change allows our reviewers to have a wider range of critical viewpoints, as well as to synchronize with Google’s rating structure. This change affects all reviews from March 2022 onwards. All reviews from before this period will still retain their original rating. Future film submissions will be considered our new 1-5 star criteria.
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