As one critic has put it, "Harmony Korine is for real." Few filmmakers have so radically divided the critical community: his fans have included the likes of Errol Morris, Werner Herzog, and Marilyn Manson, while Janet Maslin of the New York Times—speaking from a more traditional perspective—savaged his debut feature as "the worst film of the year." Critical disputes aside, what cannot be ignored is the fact that Gummo became a cult hit worldwide for a young generation of filmgoers. Born in Bolinas, California, in 1974, Korine gained notoriety at the age of nineteen for his screenplay for the film Kids, the controversial portrait of the doped-up, thrasher youth culture of New York City directed by photographer Larry Clark. In addition to the two feature films he has directed, Korine has authored a collection of writings, A Crackup At The Race Riots; directed a music video for the group Sonic Youth featuring Macaulay Culkin; and assembled a small photo book on Culkin, The Bad Son.