Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow (2006)

Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow is special because it treats a legendary, controversial writer not like a monument, but like a living, breathing human being whose sentences were earned the hard way. The film feels intimate and bracing—part celebration, part clear-eyed encounter with a mind that turned illness, addiction, and poverty into a fiercely original American voice, without sanding down the rough edges that made him matter. It’s well-crafted and deeply insightful about how Selby worked, why his books hit like a punch to the chest, and what it costs to keep making art when life keeps trying to shut you up. If you’re looking for a cozy, glossy literary profile this may be too raw, but if you want a moving portrait of genius with scars still visible, it’s absolutely worth your time.

This documentary wants to honor Hubert Selby Jr. by tracing his brutal life story and the impact of his most notorious books, and the subject matter is genuinely compelling on paper. The problem is the film often feels like a rough, rambling assemblage of talking heads and flat narration, with muddy structure and not much insight beyond the basic biography. If you’re hoping for a sharp, probing look at Selby’s craft or a visually engaging piece that matches his intensity, you may find it dull and oddly surface-level. It’s best suited to already-devoted Selby fans who’ll tolerate a plain, sometimes unclear presentation just to spend more time in his orbit.