"Der Mann, der Peter Alexander war" is a German documentary from 2006, so this one has its 10th anniversary this year. Writer and director was Birgit Kienzle, who is known for her documentary work on famous celebrities. Here she gives us her take on Austrian show business legend Peter Alexander. Or I should probably say people who spent a lot of time with Alexunder give us their take. This documentary came out pretty much exactly when Alexander turned 80 years old. It includes a collection of scenes from his movies, on-stage appearances and performances (singing) and like I already wrote interviews with people who had an impact on Alexander's life or on whose lives Alexander had a direct impact. I watched this documentary today mostly because I watched many Peter Alexander films in the last couple weeks, so it fit nicely to find out who this man really was. But do we find out? Maybe not as one interviewee says nobody knew the real Peter Neumayer, apparently a very sensitive and introverted character. Everybody just knew his stage persona Peter Alexander. I like that they kept this documentary at 1 hour, which is pretty short, but made it really essential. This one never dragged. I think this film is a prime example of what a documentary on a person should look like. The maker did a really good job here. And you cannot blame them that Alexander, by then, had no interest to appear in anything film-related anymore at all and this includes a documentary that is a tribute to him for his 80th anniversary. I am not sure if I would call myself a fan of Peter Alexander. I think he may not have been the greatest actor, but he made totally up for it through his charisma, his charming persona and his marvelous screen presence. And I also liked that the film was sometimes a bit critical too, such as the "heile Welt" references by André Heller. This was a great watch. Criminally underseen and I highly recommend you to check it out.
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