Connect with us
The Pez Outlaw film review
Image: SXSW

Film

The Pez Outlaw is a Breezy Story of Crime and Candy 

SXSW 2022: The Pez Outlaw Review

The Pez Outlaw is one of the best types of true crime documentaries, the story of a bizarre subculture that you had no idea about, and money and reputations being torched over the intellectual property related to Pez dispensers. 

Another great thing about The Pez Outlaw? It’s 90 minutes, in and out, and not the slightest bit stretched. If Netflix had gotten a hold of this story, I have a feeling it would have been stretched out over eight one-hour episodes. 

Think of it like Tiger King, only without any murder or animal cruelty, and with much lower stakes. And, you know, a small fraction of the running time. Also, the only crime is the possible illegal smuggling of goofy candy dispensers. 

Directed by Amy Bandlien Storkel and Bryan Storkel, The Pez Outlaw is the story of Steven Glew, an obsessive-compulsive hobbyist and toy collector who, in 1994, was depressed, broke, and stuck in a going-nowhere career working as a machinist. 

Then, his life was turned around when he picked up an unlikely hobby: Collecting Pez dispensers. Acting on a tip that he could import them straight from the factory in Slovenia, bring them back to the U.S., and sell them for a profit, especially ones that weren’t available domestically. 

This all took place during the head of Pez-mania, just a couple of years after the plot of a Seinfeld episode hinged on Jerry putting such a dispenser on Elaine’s leg and ruining George’s girlfriend’s piano recital. 

Naturally, his little hobby drew the ire of Big Pez, specifically the company that controlled Pez sales in the United States. Led by Scott McWhinnie, a laughable character known as the “Pezident,” the company went on the warpath against Glew.

The film doesn’t pretend at any point to be neutral, clearly putting Glew’s plight over that of the intellectual property concerns of the company.  Glew, sporting long hair and a beard, is just a fantastic documentary character, and he has a sweet relationship with his wife, Kathy, who suffers from Parkinson’s. 

Ultimately, The Pez Outlaw wanted me to chew on some Pez, preferably from a dispenser smuggling from post-Cold War Eastern Europe.

The film stages reenactments of the various events, which I normally can’t stand in documentaries, but it works here, mostly because Glew plays himself in them. Indeed, at South by Southwest Glew was awarded Special Jury Recognition for Acting in a Documentary. 

  • Stephen Silver

South by Southwest celebrates the convergence of the interactive, film, and music industries. Follow our coverage all month!

Written By

Stephen Silver is a journalist and film critic based in the Philadelphia area. He is the co-founder of the Philadelphia Film Critics Circle and a Rotten Tomatoes-listed critic since 2008, and his work has appeared in New York Press, Philly Voice, The Jewish Telegraphic Agency, Tablet, The Times of Israel, and RogerEbert.com. In 2009, he became the first American journalist to interview both a sitting FCC chairman and a sitting host of "Jeopardy" on the same day.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Facebook

Trending

Falling-Down film review Falling-Down film review

Joel Schumacher’s Falling Down Poses Some Serious Questions

Film

The Big Lebowski The Big Lebowski

25 Years Later: Aggression Will Not Stand in The Big Lebowski

Film

The Academy Awards: The Best Picture Losers The Academy Awards: The Best Picture Losers

50 Best Movies That Did Not Win Best Picture at the Oscars

Film

The Academy Awards: The Best Picture Losers The Academy Awards: The Best Picture Losers

50 Best Movies to not Win Best Picture at the Oscars

Film

Blueback film review Blueback film review

Blueback Doesn’t Dive Deep Enough

Film

Pathaan Pathaan

Pathaan Completes the Westernization of Bollywood

Culture

The Last of Us Left Behind The Last of Us Left Behind

It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye on The Last of Us “Left Behind”

TV

The Last of Us Look for the Light The Last of Us Look for the Light

The Last of Us Season One Ends the Only Way It Knows How with “Look for the Light”

TV

Ray Liotta’s 10 best movie roles Ray Liotta’s 10 best movie roles

As He Stars in Cocaine Bear, Remembering Ray Liotta’s 10 Best Movie Roles 

Film

Brother movie review Brother movie review

Brother is a Well-acted but Overwrought Account of 1990s Scarborough

Film

CREED III review CREED III review

Creed III is a Triumphant Directorial Debut for Michael B. Jordan

Film

The Last of Us When We Are in Need The Last of Us When We Are in Need

Everyone’s a Monster In The Last of Us “When We Are in Need”

TV

Inside Movie Review Inside Movie Review

Being Trapped Inside with Willem Dafoe’s Art Thief is (Mostly) Great

Film

The Mandalorian Season 2 Phenomenally Flaunts The Potential of Storytelling With Star Wars The Mandalorian Season 2 Phenomenally Flaunts The Potential of Storytelling With Star Wars

The Mandalorian Starts Season 3 with a Good Episode but an Okay Premiere in “The Apostate”

Culture

Cocaine Bear is Over-the-Top, Ridiculous Fun 

Film

The Mandalorian: Grogu’s Most Adorable Moments The Mandalorian: Grogu’s Most Adorable Moments

The Mandalorian: Grogu’s Most Adorable Moments

Culture

Connect