HBO documentary film “Pee-Wee as Himself” examines the life and career of Paul Reubens, an American comedian who has mostly been known for his famous comic character Pee-Wee Herman. Although he was a very talented comedian to say the least, he was also not so open about his private life even after several notorious scandals which could almost ruin his career and life, and it is poignant to see him openly talking about himself with some remaining discretion.

With Reubens as its main interviewee, the first part of the documentary focuses on his life and career before the creation of Pee-Wee Herman. During his childhood, he was a sensitive kid who became interested in acting as he grew up, and that is how he began to study at the California Institute of the Arts during the 1970s. Along with many other free-spirited young people in that college, he casually tried one unconventional thing after another, and his experience during that time was certainly one of the main sources of inspiration behind Pee-Wee Herman.

Meanwhile, Ruebens became more aware of his homosexuality – especially after he began a romantic relationship with an African American artist around his age. Fortunately, his parents still stood by him when he revealed his homosexuality to them, but Ruebens remained guarded about his gay life, and we observe a bit of reluctance from him when he talks about that romantic relationship which still means a lot to him.

However, Ruebens eventually became more focused on his career, and that led to the end of that romantic relationship. After frequently appearing in several TV shows such as “The Gong Show”, he joined an improvisational comedy team named “the Groundlings”, and that was where he could fully push his talent along with several notable members including Phil Hartman. Ruebens and some of his colleagues fondly remember many fun and exciting times of theirs during that time, and that is quite evident from those old video clips showing some of their highlight moments.

When Ruebens created Pee-Wee Herman, he and his colleagues did not expect much at first, but, mainly thanks to Ruebens’ effortless comic skills, this silly but amusing character became an instant hit among their audiences. As the popularity surrounding Pee-Wee Herman grew more and more, Ruebens came to perform this character on bigger stages as well as several notable TV shows, and this eventually led to the production of 1985 film “Pee-wee’s Big Adventure”, which was incidentally directed by a young filmmaker named Tim Burton.

Although the movie was his first feature film, Burton, who can be more offbeat than Ruebens as Ruebens himself admits, turned out to be a perfect creative partner for Ruebens. Burton’s own quirky artistic sensibility clicks well with the absurd comic style of Ruebens and his character, and their result became an unexpected hit to many others’ surprise.

When an executive from CBS later suggested that he should do a Saturday morning TV show for kids, Ruebens was rather reluctant at first, but he eventually decided to go all the way along with several close colleagues of his. While looking mostly appropriate for its target audiences, “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” was full of colorful spirit and absurdity from the beginning to the end, and its irrepressible charm and personality drew not only many young audiences but also a lot of adults out there.

After the commercial/critical failure of the 1988 sequel to “Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure”, Ruebens came to consider taking some time off. Once the last season of “Pee-Wee’s Playhouse” was completed, he went back to his family home in Florida for some rest in 1991, and that was when a notorious incident happened. He was arrested for indecent exposure at an adult theater, and the following scandal was a major blow to his life and career.

While mostly frank about many things in his life and career, Ruebens, who constantly tries to get some control over the documentary during his interview, is not willing to talk more about that dark period of his here in the documentary. As a matter of fact, he stopped the interview before director Matt Wolf and his crew were about to move onto that matter, even though he was actually dying due to his terminal illness at that point (As many of you know, he eventually died on July 30th, 2023).  

The second half of the documentary feels rather incomplete in case of the late years of Rueben’s career and life. As Ruebens steps back a bit, the documentary puts more emphasis on several other interviewees, but it is still touching to see how Rueben continued to work and live despite that scandal. As he points out at one point in the documentary, he is still remembered for that scandal and another hurtful scandal which happened several years later, but he kept going anyway, and his famous comic character subsequently got another big moment thanks to 2016 Netflix film “Pee-wee’s Big Holiday”.

On the whole, “Pee-Wee as Himself” presents the personality and humanity of its main human subject with a lot of sincerity and respect, and you may appreciate more of Rueben’s undeniable comic talent. It is a shame that he did not get a chance to be more open about himself before this documentary, but he has his last words at least, doesn’t he?