Louis C.K.’s New Film: Debate Builds Over Decision to Scrap It

After Louis C.K. recently fessed up to the allegations of sexual misconduct multiple women made against him, those associated with him ran for the hills.

HBO and FX publicly cut ties with the comedian, while the November 17 release of his latest film, “I Love You, Daddy,” was scrapped by its distributor, The Orchard, though the company had dropped a whopping $5 million on the picture.

“I Love You, Daddy” was C.K.’s latest effort as an actor and writer-director. The “Louie” star shot the film in secret recently on 35mm with such big-name stars as John Malkovich and Chloë Grace Moretz.

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The story revolves around a Hollywood screenwriter (played by C.K.) who is trying to prevent his 17-year-old daughter (Moretz) from pursuing a relationship with a famous, 68-year-old director (Malkovich).

The fact that the film deals with lewd behavior inside the bowels of Hollywood did not help its chances of release.

It’s understandable why “I Love You, Daddy” is being buried right now. Many of the men recently accused of sordid and inappropriate behavior against women have gotten away with their misconduct for years, sometimes even decades — so there is an extra effort to make sure these individuals don’t continue to profit from the public platforms that enabled them and their misdeeds for so long.

It’s why Kevin Spacey is being cut from Ridley Scott’s “All the Money in the World” only weeks before its release — and why Harvey Weinstein’s name has been purged from recent motion pictures from his former company.

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What should be considered, however, is whether the burial of C.K.’s movie will have the opposite effect than intended.

Buried films have a history of developing cult statuses based on fan curiosity. Look at Jerry Lewis’ “The Day the Clown Cried,” a Holocaust-set “comedy” the comedian buried; he was continually asked about it over the course of his career.

By denying a release for “I Love You, Daddy,” are distributors inadvertently giving the film a power it never would have had? Fans may theorize, petition and beg until a release eventually happens.

Perhaps the best option is to dump it onto video-on-demand services — with no promotional materials. Such a release would squash the rumor mill and end the curiosity swirling around the film and its controversial subject matter.

The movie features such major stars as Malkovich, Moretz, Edie Falco, Pamela Adlon, and others. Are we to believe some of their fans are not anticipating the film and will not help “build” its reputation if it’s not released?

Related: Comedian Louis C.K. Fesses Up

Some actually think the film is worth releasing based on its merits alone. National Review critic-at-large and novelist Kyle Smith recently wrote a piece entitled “Release the Louis C.K. Film.” A noted conservative and a former film critic for the New York Post, Smith wrote, “‘I Love You Daddy’ deserves to be seen. As its subject is sexual misbehavior, it’s particularly relevant to the cultural moment and would have attracted a sizable and engaged audience.”

“My notes consist of a single sentence: ‘It’s like he’s rubbing it in our faces,'” wrote film critic Matt Zoller Seitz for rogerebert.com.

Other critics who have sat through the movie don’t feel as warmly about it.

“If there’s one thing we know for sure about people who are accused of indecent exposure, it’s that the thrill of getting away with it is the true source of their power. In retrospect, much of ‘Louie’ now plays like a dry run for what he’d [Louis C.K.] do on the big screen with ‘I Love You, Daddy.’ The show exposes its true self deftly enough that you aren’t sure you saw what you saw. This film leaves the raincoat open while its owner makes eye contact and dares you to deny what’s happening. My notes consist of a single sentence: ‘It’s like he’s rubbing it in our faces,'” wrote film critic Matt Zoller Seitz for rogerebert.com.

Whether “I Love You, Daddy” works for audiences or not entirely depends on their ability to separate artistic work from personal acts — and their feelings toward C.K. as a creator.