My Name Is Jonah

Jonah Washnis is an everyday adventurer. He exists somewhere between the worlds of cosplay and role playing, somehow managing to do both without seeming to do either of them. "My Name Is Jonah" depicts him in an honest and intriguing way, letting the camera capture the people in his life without judging the subjects.

I saw this doc at the Long Beach Indie film fest in August, 2014. I'm internet friends with the producers and I was psyched when I found out that their flick was playing in my town. And I'm thrilled I went because it's one of the best films I've seen in the movie theater in years.

For me, the best part of the experience was the rich conversation that my fiancée and I had following the film. There are so many ways to perceive Jonah and his world. Is he delusional? Is he an artist? Is he an attention whore? Is he a man bravely making his everyday life into something special? For me, the best part about this movie is that I didn't feel like the filmmakers had the answer waiting for me -- instead, they generated the questions and compelled me to contemplate them thoughtfully for days.

In the late 90s I went to high school in Jonah's neck of the woods, the Rochester, NY area. It's an odd place. Friends and alliances were often forged around music taste above all else. Local food culture insists on doing things just a little bit different than other places (frozen custard, white hots, and garbage plates replace ice cream, hot dogs, and brunch fare). These cultural nuances are apparent in Jonah, who insists on living his life just a little bit different than everyone else. And the beauty of it is that he not only creates adventure for himself but for the people who surround him.

I know I've injected a lot of myself into this review, but I think that's in keeping with the film and the man -- this movie studies Jonah's life by asking you to step back and question your own. How many of us have neurotic siblings? Crap jobs? Failed relationships? Loyal friends?

Jonah Washnis is both relatable and completely distinct. He could exist anywhere in America. But yet, he doesn't. He's a singular individual. And "My Name Is Jonah" is the story of that unique figure... that unicorn who lives next door.

Jonah is an honest character study of a real life character. He took advantage of the MySpace bubble to create a comic book character of himself and did it really well for a long time. As the movie develops, you experience a deep look into his life. Much like epic novels like the Watchmen, or old man Logan, we witness the idea of taking a look at hero's life from a "where are they now" perspective while experiencing the iconic time hops with his own (hours and hours of) home movies of his life. Jonah is worth the watch for anyone looking and thinking "I wish I could watch a movie that had a name that sounds like Weezer's song "My Name is Jonas", but does not have the song in its soundtrack." Some would say a missed opportunity. I would say, they likely didn't have the budget to get the rights. We may never know the truth, but watch this movie.

I saw this documentary in competition at the Sydney Underground Film Festival. While it's marketed as a rough and tumble action adventure....it turns out to be something else entirely.

In reality this is a damn funny yet kind of heartbreaking comedy about a man who takes eccentricity to an extreme. The focus of the film is mainly on his relationship with his family, and reveals a 'warts and all' portrait of a man who, for better or worse, has decided to live life a little TOO much on his own terms.

I'm glad I saw this with an audience, its gallery of social outcasts and misunderstood souls had the audience roaring in laughter. The film is possibly an acquired taste, and in a way it almost plays like a satire of how weird our culture has been able to become in the wake of social networking...

See it if you're a fan of character portraits.