For almost twenty years, Conan O'Brien's fans have seen him on Late Night, The Tonight Show, and on Conan on TBS. We've seen him during ups (his better days on Late Night and his new life on TBS) and downs (cancellation rumors during Late Night and his Tonight Show debacle) but rarely have we been given a peak at his own life outside of the stage. Conan O'Brien Can't Stop provides that peak.

The documentary follows Conan in the weeks following his loss of The Tonight Show, as he embarked on The Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television tour. Those who want to see Conan bash Leno or NBC for an hour and a half will be disappointed. Aside from a few mentions here and there, it's not about either Leno or NBC. It's about a man who dreamed of hosting The Tonight Show, had it taken away from him and picking up the pieces of his comedy career via a North American comedy tour. Of course those who hate Conan will say "Get over it, you got $45 million for leaving", but one doesn't get the impression from watching this that Conan cares whether he was paid $45 million or $45. No he wouldn't decline the money, but you get the idea that Conan would trade back most of the money to be on The Tonight Show again, minus those last few weeks in favor of more time to grow (and ditching Leno for better lead-ins).

The documentary doesn't provide a ton of insight into Conan's personal life. It's all about the tour and all about a man trying to be funny and beating himself up when he feels it didn't go perfectly, even when it does. Critics felt he was a dick to a lot of people, but I never felt he was. He says things with an edge to them at times, but he's never outright mean to anyone. Even when he verges on losing it (especially post-shows when he meets dozens of fans), it's more to do with the time period in his life when he was still trying to figure out where it all went wrong and where to go from there. An early joke in the movie is that TBS is interested but nobody is all that interested in TBS. None of the TBS dealings are examined beyond that.

Conan O'Brien Can't Stop is a film made almost entirely for his fans. It can appeal to outsiders and casual viewers, but true fans will enjoy the 90 minute look into the life of a man during his 45-city tour to be funny again. It's most fun to see the crew at work, especially Exec Producer Jeff Ross, head writer Mike Sweeney and the relationship between Conan and Andy Richter.

***1/2 / ****