Hot Docs Review: Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop

 By now everyone knows the story of Conan O’Brien and his fateful episode with hosting The Tonight Show. But what a lot of people don’t know is what happened in the months between being dumped by NBC and starting his new gig on TBS. During that time O’Brien was legally prohibited from being on television and found himself without an audience. So what’s an unemployed, multi-million dollar comic to do? Take his show on the road and hit the clubs and arenas with an aptly named tour, hence, the “Legally Prohibited from Being on Television Tour.”
The documentary Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop, directed by Rodman Flender, begins right after the collapse of the Tonight Show gig and follows Conan and his team as they plan, write, and execute the 32-city tour. The movie is a mix of documenting the tour itself along with observing and analyzing Conan’s psychological state during the time. He’s tired, gaunt, pale (more so than usual) and at times completely listless, yet he’s also still incredibly driven and ambitious. It’s fascinating to watch a man who’s been kicked down get up again. Lord knows it ain’t easy – and Conan doesn’t try to make it look that way.
Conan O’Brien is funny, no doubt about it. But he’s also very bitter. Perhaps a little too bitter. While no one’s arguing that he got screwed over, comparing himself to Anne Frank (which he does, seriously) is a bit much. One could even go so far as to say he’s a bit of a jerk. He gives his writers attitude, he’s fairly mouthy to his assistant, and he gets frequently fed up with his fans.  Those around him on the tour take his witty insults with good humor because really, what choice do they have? But some visitors to his dressing room find it a bit tougher (Jack McBrayer gets a particularly tough dose of Conan’s comedy). But despite his crappy attitude, it’s quite easy to sympathize with the guy and still find him likeable, even when he’s being an asshole.