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Crispin Glover's fever dream where snails, minstrel shows, and your own brain team up to ruin you.
TMDB
55
IMDb
52
Rotten Tomatoes
50
Audience Score
54
Google
51

What Is It? (2005)

outsider art nightmaresurrealist provocationintentionally abrasive

Overview

FantasyDrama

The adventures of a young man whose principle interests are snails, salt, a pipe, and how to get home. As tormented by a hubristic, racist inner psyche.

Flag of USUS
Content warning
naziexperimentdown syndrome
internalized racismsexual shamethe grotesque as truthartistic self-immolation

Standout Aspects

Practical Effects

Glover's handmade snail costumes and nightmare sets, zero compromise.

Acting

Steven C. Stewart's unforgettable presence, cast from a previous Glover project.

Direction

Glover's complete refusal of coherence as aesthetic principle.

Best for:Solo: When you want to feel fundamentally alone with your brain.·Rewatch: Second viewing mandatory. First one barely counts.
Heads up:Disturbing: Blackface imagery, ableist slurs, and sexualized disability used deliberately.·Triggers: Self-loathing monologues and graphic choking scene.
Crispin Glover

Director

Crispin Glover

ReleasedJan 27, 2005
Runtime1h 12m
StatusReleased

Vibe

Paceslow
Intensityhigh
Tonedark
Feelheavy
Volcanic Eruptions

Top Cast

Crispin Glover

Crispin Glover

Dueling Demi-God Auteur / The Young Man's Inner Psyche and Id

Adam Parfrey

Adam Parfrey

The Minstrel

Fairuza Balk

Fairuza Balk

Screaming Snail / Insect / Monkey Girl (voice)

Ask about What Is It?

Opens AI chat

Deep Dive

Trivia, insights & behind the scenes

Cultural

Part of Glover's uncompleted 'It' trilogy; this is the only one released (Parts 2 and 3 remain unfinished due to Stewart's death and funding collapse).

Trivia

Glover funded this partly with his salary from Charlie's Angels, then got fired from the sequel for being too weird. The snails were real and required daily replacement.

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