In I’m Still Here, Joaquin Phoenix appears as an overweight, overbearing and ridiculous man. The film is framed as a documentary, implying that the character is actually the real life Phoenix.
The public first saw the new Phoenix emerge on The Late Show With David Lettermanin February of 2009. Many viewers were shocked when they witnessed Phoenix’s dramatic change. It seemed that the formerly professional actor had transformed into a confused mess. Letterman was also taken aback, apparently unaware that this version of Phoenix would be on his show.
After the appearance on Letterman, the public had to wait more than a year to see Affleck’s documentary, which takes viewers through the eyes of Phoenix as he retires from acting and ineffectively pursues a life as a hip-hop artist.
Phoenix passionately defends his “budding” musical career, but he doesn’t do much rapping at all. He’s mostly captured drunk, high, throwing up backstage, ordering prostitutes online, frequently insulting his entourage and forgetting lyrics at his gigs.
It’s appalling that Phoenix allowed himself to be presented like this; it was painful to watch him fail at almost everything he did and make a complete fool of himself in every scene. Best known for roles like Johnny Cash in Walk the Lineand Commodus in Gladiator, this Golden Globe winner portrayed himself as a complete failure, not as a professional actor.
So the questions arise: why would Joaquin Phoenix voluntarily depict himself in such a negative light? What kind of reaction from the audience is Casey Affleck, the director, trying to incite? Is the film a hoax?
Thankfully, Affleck recently admitted that the film was staged.
“It’s a terrific performance, it’s the performance of [Phoenix’s] career,” Affleck said in an interview with Michael Cieply of the New York Times. Affleck told Cieply he never intended to trick audiences.
According to Affleck, the only genuine part of the film was a brief clip of Phoenix and his siblings in Los Angeles, performing on the street.
Phoenix has told various media outlets that he’s planning on taking new movie roles. Whether or not the industry and audiences will take his next endeavor seriously is, like the debate about the documentary before Affleck provided insight, a giant question mark.
