Life Itself (2014)

 “There are no strangers in family: I loved and am loved.” – Roger Ebert

Number of Times Seen – 1 (20 Jul 2014)

Brief Synopsis – A documentary about the life story and last days of one of the most famous movie reviewers ever – Roger Ebert

My Take on it – For as long as I can recall, I have known and loved Roger Ebert for his movie opinions.

As a kid, I loved to watch his show with Gene Siskel in all its incarnations to see what was new to the theaters and what was worth seeing.

I especially loved it when they disagreed but only now realized from this documentary how volatile and lovely that relationship between them truly was.

This movie sheds all the facades that the public saw and shows us what kind of man Roger Ebert truly was in his private life and what events in his life made him reassess and make his life happier for himself and his loved ones.

Most of the film portions that interview Ebert were filmed during his final days as he was dealing with numerous medical issues. Seeing him in his weakened and sickly state is not the most pleasant viewing experience but I commend Ebert and director Steve James for not ‘sugar coating’ this movie. Many of those visuals with remain with me for quite some time.

This is so far the best documentary I’ve seen this year and it might be difficult to top it because it was made so truthfully and open bearing the soul of one of the great men who inspired most of us movie lovers to keep watching and discussing our love of the cinema.

Bottom Line – Excellent movie that truly shows us who Ebert was in a very open manner. It shows us his true self behind the scenes and the catalysts in his life that made him change the way he lived his life. So far the best documentary that I’ve seen this year even if parts are not easy to watch. Highly recommended!

Rating – Oscar Worthy

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