Johnny Knoxville: Detroit Lives

There’s a film floating around called Detroit Lives where Johnny Knoxville walks through the city documenting what’s actually happening there—the artists, the builders, the people who never left. It’s a Palladium Boots production, probably still online somewhere, though these things have a way of disappearing.

Knoxville’s right for it. He’s always been comfortable with things that don’t fit the story people want to hear, that aren’t glamorous. So him moving through Detroit—which everyone’s either written off or approached with a kind of mournful reverence—just works. He shows up and lets the place speak for itself.

Detroit doesn’t need another documentary about its collapse. That one’s been told. What’s interesting is what happened underneath it all, what kept building when nobody was watching. That’s the film.

If you see it, watch it. Actually worth the time.