A Self-Proclaimed ‘Idiot’ Comically Documents His Tragic Terminal Cancer Battle

Why is André Ricciardi, the subject of a documentary directed by Tony Benna, an idiot? The film’s title, “André Is An Idiot,” makes no bones about the appellation, nor, during the course of its running time, does its subject. We even hear his mother describe André as an idiot. What gives?The answer comes early on: Ricciardi, at the age of fifty, passed on having a colonoscopy because he wasn’t inclined to do so. One year later, he was diagnosed with stage four cancer. Three years later, Riccardi was dead. “André Is An Idiot” details how one individual handles the consequences of that unfortunate decision and, with that, an encroaching mortality. He did so by calling up a friend to film the journey.Among those on hand are André’s wife, the dutiful Janice, and two teenage daughters, Tallula and Delilah. A long-time colleague and best friend, Lee Einhorn, is here, as is, of all people, Tommy Chong of Cheech and Chong fame. Ricciardi’s father, a man who is steadfast in maintaining his privacy, refused to cooperate in Mr. Benna’s venture. Mr. Chong, being a lookalike for the paterfamilias, agreed to be a stand-in.Mr. Chong was chosen for another reason: He is a survivor of colorectal cancer. Was Ricciardi a fan of stoner comedy? Given a history rife with alcohol and drug use, a disinterested party could assume as much. Ricciardi took a page from Mr. Chong’s playbook in terms of approaching a terminal disease. “Here’s what I learned,” the comedian stated in a 2016 interview, “By keeping a flippant attitude during hard times, your body responds to how you perceive yourself.”Flippancy had long been a guiding principle for Riccardi. The film begins with him relating a story of teenage masturbation gone painfully awry. Too much information, you might think, but Ricciardi doesn’t stop there. After rummaging through a cluttered supply room, he emerges with a pair of Kim Kardashian’s stretchy pants bought at auction. Ricciardi mused that any residual DNA could conceivably be cloned. If it worked for the dire wolf, why not the social media personality?Riccardi’s cultivated eccentricity had been a trademark throughout his life as a husband, father, and a San Francisco adman, a creative who worked for, among others, eBay, Sprint, Lipton Tea, Pepsi and 20th Century Fox. André can be a bit much — he was a showman, for sure, and his default mode is flouting societal norms. Not every parent reads “Helter Skelter” to his children as a goodnight story. That he enlisted Mr. Benna to film “a comedy about his cancer” was par for the course.When the prognosis comes in, André’s attempts in making a bad situation better are valiant, but also strained. How could they not be given the circumstances? Our hero is initially bored by his illness “How routine my death feels already,” he states–and life continues apace. Visits to the doctor are scheduled and alternative treatments are mooted, though the trip to Italy for a head transplant — yes, really — is put on hold and then dismissed.Mr. Benna punctuates the film with animated segments featuring a shaggy-haired effigy of André — imagine Wallace and Gromit combined with the Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers. We’re also privy to a meeting at Riccardi’s former workplace in which a funny ad campaign for preventative medicine is unveiled. All the while, André’s illness gets the better of him. Though he plays down the initial hair-loss, Riccardi becomes increasingly sober in demeanor as his strength wanes and his frame becomes skeletal.Is “André Is An Idiot” the feel good movie it’s touted to be? Not especially, but should the upshot of Mr. Benna’s “embrace [of] the glorious mess of being human” prompt a call to the doctor, then it will have proven a worthwhile endeavor.

A Self-Proclaimed ‘Idiot’ Comically Documents His Tragic Terminal Cancer Battle

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