American: The Bill Hicks Story

American: The Bill Hicks Story (2010) is a British documentary you can watch online on iFILM. Directors Matt Harlock and Paul Thomas built the film from archive concert recordings, home video and photographs — animating the still images rather than cutting to talking heads, which keeps the energy moving even when Hicks isn't performing.

He started doing standup in Houston at fifteen, burned through the Texas club circuit, and by his early thirties was selling out venues in London. Britain took to him before his home country did. In October 1993, CBS cut his entire Letterman set before it aired — a moment that defined how American TV handled uncomfortable material. He died of pancreatic cancer in February 1994, at thirty-two. The documentary tracks his arc from the Southern Baptist household in Houston to cult status on two continents, and lets the original material carry the argument about why he still matters.

If you only know him by reputation, this is where to start. Stream American: The Bill Hicks Story (2010) online on iFILM.