Winnebago Man (Movie Review)

“You had a bad day/You’re taking one down/You sing a sad song just to turn it around…” Make that A REALLY FUCKING SHITTY, COCKSUCKING DAY, and you have a YouTube sensation.

In 1988, former newscaster, Jack Rebney, was hired by the Winnebago company to be in an industrial film for the Itsaca Sunflyer model. The outtakes from the two week shoot, however, are what have made him a pop culture phenomenon. Videos of the outtakes began circulating in the early 90’s, eventually making it to YouTube in 2005. His rants, swearing and madman gestures are so exagerrated and over the top that you end up watching him with equal parts disbelief and relatability. A legend is born.

As with all YouTube videos, we can’t help but wonder: who are these people?, what are their lives like?, what are their jobs?, do they have familes?, etc. Ben Steinbauer, a longtime fan of The Winnebago Man, decides to find out exactly who this man is and what makes him tick. Is he really the “angriest man in America”?

When Steinbauer locates him, Rebney is now in his seventies managing a campground in Northern California, and the answer seems to be “no”. He comes across as jovial, good-natured and genuinely confused by his popularity. He is the exact opposite of the man from the videos and Steinbauer leaves with his tail between his legs thoroughly disappointed. It seems as if Jack Rebney really might have just been having one colossally bad day 20 years ago.

Weeks later, however, Rebney calls Steinbauer and reveals that it was all a joke. He didn’t want to give him what was expected of him, so he decided it would be funny to be exactly the opposite of the man viewed by over 20 million people around the world. As the phone calls become more frequent, however, Steinbauer begins to see that, not only is he just as angry as the man in the box, but he is even angrier. Is that even possible? Yes. Yes, it is. It turns out that Jack Rebney is incensed by religion, Dick Cheney, Wal Mart and a myriad of other random topics. He is extremely intelligent and verbose while also being extremely profane which make his tirades all the more interesting and entertaining. It’s as if Walter Cronkite and Archie Bunker had a baby and named it Jack Rebney.

The most interesting thing about “Winnebago Man” is that, ultimately, no one’s mocking him. What made people love Jack Rebney was his unabashed demonstration of having a really bad day, because, hell, we’ve all been there at one point or another. What Steinbauer was able to do, however, was to make us love him all over again. He’s genuinely respected because he says what he wants, when he wants. He has no limits, filters or boundaries and you have to respect that. I, for one, am just plain jealous. Do me a kindness, will ya’? SEE THIS FUCKING MOVIE!!