Pee-Wee's Big Holiday

Netflix

This film has been nearly twenty years in the making. Paul Reubens aka Pee-Wee Herman had an embarrassing scandal, and ever since has been trying to claw his way back into the spotlight. He did some dramatic roles in movies like "Blow," and has extensive TV credits to his name. He finally got someone to fund a Pee-Wee venture in 2011 when he opened the playhouse back up and made a Broadway show of it, which he filmed for HBO. This particular film has its beginnings all the way back in 2010 when Judd Apatow vowed interest as a producer. Netflix finally gave the old boy the juice to make his way back to our screens, with this exclusive film. Was it worth the blood, sweat, and tears that Reuben gave in writing and starring in this film?

Well, yes and no. There is something decidedly Pee-wee Herman about this film. It's an odd duck among all the other surreal and cartoonish films of the past ten years. Most of the time it's simply weird to the point of confusion and anger, but then there are these cut scenes with Joe Manganiello that make you burst out in pointed, uncomfortable laughter. Throughout watching this film it was difficult to know what I thought I saw onscreen. Sometimes it was a dark comedy. Sometimes it was nightmare fuel. It was always Pee-wee, but never the same Pee-wee. Sometimes it was Playhouse Pee-Wee, like in the opening when he drives around in a tiny car. Sometimes it was the sexual-insanity of "Big Top Pee-wee." This was definitely not a kid's film, but had the manic energy of a child who had eaten too much candy and was experiencing night terrors.
 

Overall I enjoyed the bulk of the film. It was weird, mostly in a good way. It was somewhat funny, but it didn't overdo it on the slapstick or puns. While this is a good enough film, it didn't really feel like Pee-wee Herman. Where was the childish wonder, the asexuality, the constant laughter and penchant for friendship with lots of misfits and inanimate objects? Though Pee-wee left the playhouse, does that mean he has to be homogenized for the real world? I don't think so, and neither does the audience from Netflix, who have all found this to be a mixed bag. We want Pee-wee but at what cost? The Broadway show was amazing, and I believe that that's the Pee-wee I want to remember, not the one who pretends he hasn't been on a big trip before and throws temper tantrums in the kitchen where he works.