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"Eat That Question — Frank Zappa in His Own Words"
Documentary Premieres
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If there's anything more indicative of Frank Zappa's inability to suffer fools than his satirical avant-garde music, it's his reactions to reporters, as evidenced in the footage compiled in the engaging documentary "Eat That Question — Frank Zappa in His Own Words." Starting from his early performing days, playing a bicycle with a violin bow for Steve Allen, and going through his death in 1993, director Thorsten Schütte mines interview and performance footage from talk shows (back when people like Dick Cavett and Mike Douglas would book interesting guests) and his congressional testimony in his censorship battle with Tipper Gore. Zappa's prickly demeanor is on full display, and it's to Schütte's credit that he finds what Zappa doesn't say as illuminating as what he does.
— Sean P. Means
"Eat That Question — Frank Zappa in His Own Words" screens again at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival: Wednesday, 9 p.m., Temple Theatre, Park City; Thursday, 6 p.m., Tower Theatre, Salt Lake City; Saturday, 11:45 p.m., Egyptian Theatre, Park City.