Sundance Review: André Is an Idiot is a Noble Document of a Dumb Decision

There is an unbridled honesty to André Is an Idiot that is admirable, even if all of it doesn’t really work. It’s a simple, stark subject for a documentary: accomplished advertising creative André Ricciardi neglected to get a colonoscopy at the recommended age and when he finally did get one he learned he had Stage 4 Colon Cancer. In response to this death sentence, André decided to make a film about dying. It’s a bold idea, reflective of many of his ideas for commercials and otherwise.

Directed by Tony Benna, it’s snappily edited, full of good music and fun animation that band-aids terrifying procedures like chemotherapy. Its tone matches that of its subject: a mismatch of denial, optimism, and fatalism softened (constantly) by comedy. Ricciardi is surrounded by a deeply supportive family, a cavalcade of friends, and a team of top-notch doctors. There are lovely moments, such as André and his wife Janice recounting the inception of their courtship: she needed to marry someone to stay in the country, he volunteered, and they eventually fell in love. There are legitimately funny moments, like the scene in which André and his friend come upon some coins in a fountain and his friend asks him dryly: “What would you wish for?” There’s also a very strong, hysterical memory that opens the film and which you won’t soon forget.

There are also sequences that may stretch a viewer’s patience. These include an extended scene involving a laborious process of deciding on your final words before death as well as a rationalization of André’s lifelong, very silly “no cops, no doctors” policy. Or half a rationalization. He is very open about his mistakes and the film is ultimately a very well-produced PSA to get a colonoscopy in a timely fashion. Other than that, it’s a bittersweet account of a strange, interesting life. There’s talk of a clever campaign to promote getting your colonoscopy which, of course, is very noble.

Frankly, one treads lightly in being overly critical of André Is an Idiot. At its core, this is a well-made home movie with an important message about not ignoring the doctor. It’s great that it exists. People will watch it and laugh and be informed. That the film itself or André himself didn’t fully engage me––or that I found it mostly unfunny––is nearly a moot point. Life is short and we should all do our best to enjoy as much of it as we can.

André Is an Idiot premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival and will be released by A24.

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