American Splendor (film)

American Splendor is a 2003 film based on the comic books series by Harvey Pekar and Joyce Brabner.
 * Directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini. Screenplay by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini.

Ordinary life is pretty complex stuff.

Harvey

 * I've had enough bad experiences and growth to last me plenty...Right now, I'd be glad to trade some growth for happiness.
 * Man, she's got good looking handwriting.
 * Look Toby, the guys in that movie are not 28 year-old file clerks who live with their grandmothers in an ethnic ghetto...They didn't get their computers like you did, by trading in a bunch of box tops and $49.50 at the supermarket...Sure, go to the movies and daydream, but Revenge of the Nerds ain't reality. It's just Hollywood bullshit.
 * Yeah, I know I'm not as interesting as The Little Mermaid and all that magical crap.

Joyce

 * Why does everything in my life have to be such a complicated disaster?!
 * Harvey, we better skip this whole courtship thing and just get married.
 * I guess I have a lot of borderline health disorders that limit me politically when it comes to eating.
 * I'll have you know that I come from a very dysfunctional family. I can spot personality disorders a mile away.
 * [referring to David Letterman] Megalomaniac.
 * I find most of American cities to be depressing in the same way.

Toby

 * I recommend the piña coladas. They are excellent and very authentic tasting.
 * [to Harvey] You know, you should try believing in something bigger than yourself. It might cheer you up.
 * [regarding "Revenge of the Nerds"] Yes, I consider myself a nerd. And this movie has uplifted me.
 * Hamburgers are a safer addiction than drugs. Say no to drugs. Say yes to White Castle.

Others

 * Young Harvey: I ain't no super hero, lady. I'm just a kid from the neighborhood, all right?
 * Crumb: You turned yourself into a comic hero?
 * Real Harvey: It seemed that real, salt of the earth people like Toby and me were being co-opted by these huge corporations. We were getting held up and ridiculed as losers in the system. What can I say, it was the '80s, man.
 * Danielle: [to Harvey] Joyce is right. You are obsessive-compulsive.

Dialogue

 * Mr. Boats: Avoid the reeking herd! Shun the polluted flock! Live like that stoic bird, the eagle of the rock!" You know what that means, son?
 * Harvey: Yeah. It's from an Elinor Hoyt Wylie poem. It means stay away from the crowds of common ordinary people and do your own thing.
 * Mr. Boats: Nope, it means don't compromise yourself for women. Ain't gonna do you no good. Get away from them as soon as you can!
 * Harvey: Well, I ain't got no woman now. So I'm living like the stoic bird, man.
 * Mr. Boats: The only way to live, son.


 * Mattress Guy 1: So how smart is she?
 * Mattress Guy 2: I don't know. I guess she's about average.
 * Mattress Guy 1: Average? Hey, man. Average is dumb!


 * Joyce: Hi, Harvey. We finally meet in person.
 * Harvey: Hiya. Look, before we get started with any of this, you might as well know right off the bat. I had a vasectomy.


 * Joyce: Harvey, go get me water and a few aspirin.
 * Harvey: What, you got a headache?
 * Joyce: No, but I want to avoid one.

Major cast

 * Paul Giamatti &mdash; Harvey Pekar
 * Hope Davis &mdash; Joyce Brabner
 * Harvey Pekar &mdash; Real Harvey
 * Shari Springer Berman &mdash; Interviewer
 * James Urbaniak &mdash; Robert Crumb
 * Judah Friedlander &mdash; Toby Radloff
 * Earl Billings &mdash; Mr. Boats
 * Joyce Brabner &mdash; Real Joyce
 * Toby Radloff &mdash; Real Toby
 * Madylin Sweeten &mdash; Danielle
 * James McCaffrey &mdash; Fred
 * Danielle Batone &mdash; Real Danielle
 * Maggie Moore &mdash; Alice Quinn
 * Molly Shannon &mdash; Stage Joyce
 * Donal Logue &mdash; Stage Harvey