So, I just watched The Devil and Daniel Johnston. And I'm filled with the usual complicated reactions that hit me whenever I watch/read something to do with creativity and insanity. But what struck me most was how motivated DJ was/is by a need to be famous. How did/does his obsessive desire for celebrity fuel his craziness, I wonder? Because it felt to me as though it has caused him some harm, egged him on to further madness in a way. Conversely, how much did/does his desire for celebrity keep that same madness in check, by giving him a reason to be at least slightly in touch with the world?
It's hard for me to think reasonably about these questions because I hold that the desire for fame is one of the least worthy ambitions that can fuel a life, and I mistrust and to some degree despise those who seek celebrity. I also stumble when I'm shown yet again how the legitimately crazy use their craziness to get their own way. There seemed to me to be a self-consciousness to much of DJ's behavior that annoyed me at times. But that very self-consciousness may be what has kept him out of the bin (lately) or even alive, so who am I to complain?
The film also made me feel very sorry for crazy folk who don't have any talent or charm and so can't attract the attention of people who decide to care for them because they find them interesting. And would people have paid so much attention to DJ if he hadn't been a bit bonkers? How much of his status as a darling of indy (indie?) music resulted because he was an interesting curiosity?
Finally, his poor, poor parents . . . And poor, poor Daniel Johnston when they die. For I doubt if any of his devoted fans will be willing to put up with him when he needs someone to take his parents' place.
One more thing: did DJ's little dance during the closing credits remind anyone else of that Star Wars kid's light saber performance?