“Everything was supposed to work out and it didn’t.” – Marc Maron
Are We Good? the new documentary, directed by Steven Feinartz, gets cozy with Marc Maron as he processes the death of his partner Lynn Shelton and emerges back into life and comedy after Covid and such an incredible loss.
To be honest, I might be too close to this to write a “review” of this doc, but I’m going to anyway. I’m a fan and an acquaintance. I’ve run in some of the same circles as Maron, hung backstage with him at festivals, supported him at shows, and even run into him on hikes. And he got me through the loss of my dad. Not personally, but through his TV show Maron, through his long running podcast WTF, and through his comedy.
If you buy a ticket, tune into a special, or listen to an episode of his pod, you are along for the ride whether you are ready or not. But that is part of the magic of Maron. You come for the comedy and the interviews, but you stay for the humanity of it all. He is both the darkness and the light. The anxiety and the calm.
Through WTF, I was introduced to Lynn Shelton and her work. I clearly remember her 2015 interview with Maron. The connection between them was palpable and was captured in the recording. I became a fan of hers after that episode. And eventually when they went public with their relationship, I became a fan of them together. After years of listening to Maron process relationship after relationship, it felt like he had found a version of peace with her.
But I can remember the gut punch I felt when I found out that Shelton had died. I wanted to reach out, hug him, and say all the right things. But outside of electronic communication and checking in through friends, there was no getting together because we were all locked down in the midst of the pandemic. And while I know Maron is a strong guy who has lived through a lot, I was worried. I was worried about what was going to happen in the after of her passing. Was he going to collapse? Fall off the wagon? Burn it all down?
Then Maron began to do what he has always done. Process out loud. He had done it on stage and on air, and then he took to Instagram Live. And while it was difficult to say whether he was going to be ok or if he was ever going to do comedy again, it was good to know he was still here.
And then he returned to comedy. I saw two of his first shows back. It was good to see him and reconnect. And while he was still grieving, he was still as funny, if not funnier, because grief sharpens the blade that is humor. And he sliced through the crowd’s trepidation with ease.
You see, grief and comedy need one another. Those of us who have lost someone know the pain of that loss but also the healing of the gallows humor and the deep body wracking laughs. And Marc Maron needed the comedy after the grief.
And that is what Are We Good? explores in a truly beautiful way. While Feinartz digs into some of the history of Maron’s life, he doesn’t rehash the stories that Maron has already told. Feinartz lets Marc be Marc and captures the pain and process of the past five years through new footage, archived videos, clips from TV and stand-up specials, and interviews with friends.
If you have been fortunate to hear someone talk about someone they love that has died, you have heard the way their tone changes when those stories access the memories that bring that person back into the present, even just for a moment. And Maron shares some truly beautiful and vulnerable things about Shelton and in many ways brings her into this space, and this time, even if just for a short while. These things aren’t structured or pre-planned; it is him processing her love and their life out loud in a way that is both a love letter and a eulogy.
But this documentary isn’t just about that part of Maron’s life. It feels like a natural extension of who he is and how he works, even though he isn’t the one behind the camera. And in the end, Are We Good? has no epic denouement. Feinartz stays true to Maron and doesn’t try to put a shiny bow on this part of his life. Instead, he shows Maron moving forward and asking that question, which is Maron’s signal that the conversation has reached its end. And I think he is good, or at least ok. And in the aftermath of death and grief, sometimes ok is enough.
Are We Good? has a runtime of 1 hour and 37 minutes and will be released in theaters in Los Angeles and New York on October 3rd and then through nationwide events October 5th and 8th.
