[via Movie City News Indie]: Crispin Hellion Glover, who's best known for playing George McFly in the Back to the Future films, has spent the last two decades getting weirder. My housemate, "Brother Pete" Onlock, the weirdo in our six-man house in my second and thrid years at Crazy Go Nuts University, considered Glover to be a sort of personal hero, especially after that meltdown he had on Late Night With David Letterman.

In the late 1980's, Glover published his home phone number in a number of offbeat publications, promising callers some interesting taped messages. In 1989, having a morbid curiosity and the phone number from Keyboard World magazine, I called the number and was treated a rant about rats that was both creepy and hilarious.

There have been rumours about a magnum opus film project on which he's been working for years. It looks like we'll finally get our chance to see it: the film, titled What Is It? will be premiering at the Sundance Film Festival on January 27, 29 and 30.

According to Movie City News' Indie section: "Most of the actors in the film have Down’s Syndrome, but the film is not about Down’s Syndrome. Mr. Glover explains the plot thus: 'Being the adventures of a young man whose principal interests are snails, salt, a pipe, and how to get home, as tormented by an hubristic racist inner psyche.'"

Oh, my.

Here's the poster for What Is It?

Photo: Poster for Crispin Hellion Glover's 'What Is It?'

Oh, my again.

That's nothing, however. For the full "Oh, my!" experience, you're going to have to watch the trailer [NOT SAFE FOR WORK: some nudity, and completely whacked out]. It reminds me of Pavlov Video Chicken I, the piece reviewed in the "Bad Conceptual Art" skit from the 1978 Saturday Night Live.

I am eagerly awaiting the DVD release so I can host a "Bad Art Night" party.

As an added bonus, here's the video of Crispin Glover's infamous appearance on Late Night with David Letterman. [6.5 MB AVI file, enclosure]. I remember watching this when it was broadcast and wondering "Is he acting, or is he really flipping out?"