Moving, big-hearted documentary on the life of Chicago Sun-Times film critic Roger Ebert, the only movie reviewer ever to be awarded the Pulitzer Prize. Ebert, who grew up in Urbana, Illinois, longed for the world of possibilities of Chicago, and headed that way with a Ph. D. in English but without a job. Assignments at the Chicago Sun-Times amazingly led to the vacant film critic's chair in 1967 after the previous reviewer retired (I've heard that story several times and still find it difficult to believe; the cliquish attitude at most newspapers would seem to ensure a popularity fight amongst in-house journalists for the job). It isn't made clear how much of an impact the world of movies made on Ebert before he got the job (cinema is simply not mentioned before this chapter of his life). He apparently embraced the position whole-heartedly, eventually penning a screenplay for filmmaker Russ Meyer (the lamentable "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls") and becoming half of the amusingly combative "Siskel & Ebert & the Movies" review program on television, hugely popular for many years (first on PBS, as "Sneak Previews", and then in syndication). Tragically, Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert both succumbed to cancer (Siskel from a malignant brain tumor in February 1999). Ebert, with his loving wife Chaz by his side, courageously battles thyroid and salivary gland cancer, never allowing his health complications and multiple hospital stays slow him down. Extremely prolific in the last year of his life, he retained his love of movies and his sense of humor while also being resigned to death. Roger Ebert passed away in April 2013, and did so with dignity and grace. For anyone who grew up watching Siskel and Ebert on TV every week, it was the end of an era; this film represents a document to their legacy, as well as a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. National Board of Review named the film as Best Documentary, but Oscar did not come calling. *** from ****
Review of Life Itself
Life Itself
(2014)
"Thank you for going on this journey with me. I'll see you at the movies."
4 January 2015