Sick: The Life and Death of Bob Flanagan, Supermasochist
This 1996 internationally acclaimed, award-winning documentary, directed by Kirby Dick chronicles the life and art of Bob Flanagan; an American 
performance artist, stand-up comic, poet and lifelong sufferer from cystic fibrosis. Flanagan began routinely maiming his own body to deal with and overcome the acute physical pain he felt every day. He was the literal embodiment of the joke about the man who liked to hit himself with a hammer because it felt so good when he stopped. The film explores how his masochism and BDSM experiences helped him manage the pain of his illness.
Flanagan’s self-torturing habits are the basis for his avant-garde live performances, which are featured prominently in the film. He met his perfect 
dominatrix partner in Sheree Rose and married her in 1982 while she hung him upside down from a ceiling, as Flanagan wryly comments during one his shows, ‘You always hurt the one you love’.
Kirby Dick follows Bob and Sheree through the last years of Flanagan’s life. Deeply moving, often hilarious, Sick is a profile of a unique artist, giving an insight into Flanagan’s warmth, courage and, especially his sense of humour. Flanagan had agreed to participate under the condition that his death be included in the final film.
