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The Comic Book Palace
USA 2013
produced by Method to Madness Films
directed by Felipe Jorge
starring Glenn O'Leary, Corey Turner, Dave Serpa, Phil Krajewski, Devin DiTomaso, Chad Pfeil, Tim O'Leary, Andrew Royea, Ivy Scribner, Andrew Rodger, Rand Hall, Michael A. Beatrn, Jason West, Scott Vadeboncoeur, Hannah Scribner, Michael Symes, Christopher Golden, Chloe Darke, Ross MacKenzie, Skip Cormir, Isaac S. Perry
shot and edited by Felipe Jorge
documentary
review by Mike Haberfelner
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Comic book stores are pretty much a dime a dozen across the USA, and
upon superficial inspection, the Comic Book Palace in Haverhill,
Massachusetts is just one of them, with its comic book displays neatly
divided between the major publishers and indies, tons of graphic novels
neatly stacked on shelves upon shelves, and of course boxes upon boxes of
back issues. What makes the shop special though is that it is run by one
single guy, Glenn O'Leary, who's a guy who simply loves comic books new
and old, knows almost everything there is to know about them, and has
managed to turn his shop into a community center for comic book fans young
and old by getting into regular interactions with his regulars that go
beyond the usual vendor-client relationship, glad hanging up comic
book-related artwork by kids and wannabe artists in his shop, and
maintaining a relaxed attitude to the business side of things, rather
concentrating on the appeal of comic books as such - which is of course
greatly appreciated by his customers, many of whom feel like family in his
shop ... even if almost all of their conversations are about comic books,
sometimes heated discussions even ... The Comic Book Palace
is first and foremost a loving hommage to brick-and-mortar comic book
stores as such, but especially the titular one of course, a place that
goes beyond what one would expect from a store of its sort, a story that
really manages to create its very own microcosm revolving (mostly) about
comic books - and the movie manages to capture that nicely, partly of
course because store owner Glenn O'Leary is a really likeable character by
himself, but also because it manages to draw the store's regulars, which
might seem weirdos to the general public, in a positive light, shows there
often heated discussions with a twinkle in the eye, shows a knowledge for
comic books as such, and lightens things up with excerpts from popular
(and less popular) comic book movies old and new. You don't have to like
comic books to like this documentary, but after you've seen it, you'll
probably go to your local comic book store and buy one ...
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