I wonder how many times the Birdman guys watched Who Is Harry Kellerman and Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me? Released in June of 1971 – the idea that this was a summer movie(!) – this is one of the strangest movies I’ve seen in a long time, and I am constantly intrigued by all of its ingredients, and I find myself returning to it more frequently than not. A stream of conscious narrative that jockeys back and forth in tone and intent, I have a feeling that cocaine might have been a large part in this film getting made back in the day. Directed by Ulu Grosbard, written by Herb Gardner, and starring Dustin Hoffman in one of his loosest, weirdest roles, the film’s suicide-obsessed structure is one of those “all in one day” stories, but this time, what’s happening on screen can never fully be trusted because of the dreamy nature to Victor Kemper’s stony visuals and the oblique nature of the storytelling. Hoffman plays a paranoid rock music composer who is having a really bad week due to a mysterious man named Harry Kellerman who has been spreading lies and rumors about him.
What follows is a shaggy-dog story of a man losing his grip on reality, while the witty script continually sends pointed zingers in the direction of the entertainment industry. The ending is beyond bold to contemplate and would be unthinkable in our post 9/11 world, and the film’s got some extremely quirky credits (Shel Silverstein did the musical score) and a hippie-tinged soundtrack that gives off some funky-good vibes. I’m pretty sure that critics had no idea what to say about this movie when it was released and that audiences were annoyed and baffled. Barbara Harris was fantastic in her handful of scenes with Hoffman, who for his part, created a wobbly portrait of a fractured man, resulting in a turbulent inner core to the film. Jack Warden has some memorable scenes opposite Hoffman has his shrink. A Cinema Center Films production in association with National General Pictures. Who is Harry Kellerman also holds the distinction of having the longest title to a movie that was nominated for an Oscar, with Harris receiving a Best Supporting Actress nod.
Podcasting Them Softly 