Robert’s drawings come from an uninhibited place that is totally different from those of somebody sitting in an art studio in front of somebody naked trying to get the contours right. He’s trying to instill more than subversion - a point of view. Katano is trying to do when he’s looking through Robert’s bland figure drawings at the start of the movie. I had a high school teacher who tried to get the most out of his creative students by forcing them to mine the very particular elements of their life they hadn’t seen represented in art, tap into those moments, figure them out, and treat their own perspective and point-of-view seriously in order to develop a voice. Owen Kline: I’ve always had subversive mentors in my life. Do you consider yourself a subversive artist? WSN: Early on in the film, Robert’s teacher drills him about how he must subvert his medium to gain acclaim and become a successful artist. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. WSN sat down with Kline and Zolghadri to discuss the zany nature of “Funny Pages,” the film’s origins, and its deep ties to New York comic book culture. As Robert navigates a seedy labyrinth of unbridled passion, neurotic artists, awful apartments and teenage emotions, Kline extracts a coming-of-age story that teeters between gross humor and poignant lessons. The film follows young cartoonist Robert (Daniel Zolghadri ) who decides to strike out on his own and abandon the comforts of suburban New Jersey to make it big as a graphic novelist. Sharing more in common with films like Terry Zwigoff’s investigation into the life of cartoonist Robert Crumb and the daring forays into the ugliness of everyday life penned by the Safdie Brothers, Kline’s comedy about underground comics offers an uncomfortable amount of insight into the nooks and crannies of a rarely represented micro-culture. Several years in the making, Owen Kline’s directorial debut “Funny Pages” offers a laugh that’s been missing for quite some time in the contemporary world of sanitized R-rated comedies. Spoiler warning: This article includes spoilers for “Funny Pages.”
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