Review of Life Itself (2014) by Patrick L — 22 Dec 2014

"Life Itself is a fascinating portrait of the greatest film critic in America.".

Movie Review: Life Itself.

Date Viewed: September 6 2014.

Directed By Steve James (Hoop Dreams).

Based on the book "Life Itself: A Memoir" by Roger Ebert.

Starring: Roger Ebert, Chaz Ebert, Martin Scorsese, A.O. Scott, Gene Siskel, Richard Corliss, Marlene Iglitzen and Werner Herzog.

He inspired me to become a movie critic. I was really sad when Roger Ebert passed away at the age of 70. Now his final days are being told in a new documentary called "Life Itself". When "Life Itself" went into production, Ebert believed that he was cancer-free but midway through filming, he received his death sentence. The cancer had returned and he only had months to live. When Director Steve James (Hoop Dreams) agreed to make this movie, based on Ebert's memoir,.

He never imagined what the project would be like. "Life Itself" is not only a great piece of documentary cinema, it's also a great piece of filmmaking.

"Life Itself" not only shows us archived footage of the entirety of his career, it also shows us footage captured during Ebert's final months. Roger Ebert was born in Urbana, Illinois in June of 1942. His mother was a bookkeeper and his dad was an electrician. His grandparents were German immigrants and he was raised a Roman Catholic. He began taking classes at the University of Illinois and then in 1967, he got a job at the Chicago Sun-Times as a film critic. In 1970, he teamed up with Russ Meyer to make an exploitation picture called "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls".

Ebert became the first film critic to win the Pulitzer Prize and in 1975, he was asked to do a weekly film review show "Sneak Previews" with Gene Siskel. It was picked up by PBS and in 1982, the show's title was changed to "At the Movies With Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert". The title was changed again to "Siskel & Ebert" and the duo later became famous for their thumbs up/thumbs down trademark. The two had contentious relationship at first but they soon respected each other. The most fascinating part about "Life Itself" is when Roger was writing "Beyond the Valley of the Dolls", Gene was in a yacht with Hugh Hefner for a year. I couldn't believe it, this was Gene Siskel back then? In 1992, Ebert finally married the girl of his dreams, Chaz and Gene's daughters were the flower girls on his big day. Siskel died in 1999 from a brain tumor and Ebert was using other film critics (including Richard Roeper) to fill in his place for him. Gene's wife, Marlene is also in "Life Itself" and she recalls that he kept his condition a secret in order to spare his children. Devastated by his unexpected death, Roger vowed that if he had cancer, he would not keep it a secret.

In 2002, Roger announced that he had thyroid cancer but he was able to do the show. In 2006, the cancer had spread to his right jaw and he was unable to speak. He returned to reviewing movies on May 18, 2007 but he was unable to return to host "At the Movies" with Richard Roeper. It is at times difficult to watch but this is the story of the greatest film critic who ever lived. There will be nobody else like him. He and Gene Siskel were the most powerful film critics in America. I still can't believe they're gone.

Roger Ebert was also a champion of little films and he put directors like Werner Herzog, Michael Moore, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee and Errol Morris on the map. Ebert once described the movies as "a machine that generates empathy", I know what exactly what he means. This is the year's best documentary, it is a lovely tribute to the most influential movie critic of our time. Not only does "Life Itself" need to get nominated in the Best Documentary category, it also needs to get a Best Picture nomination.

My thumbs are going way up because "Life Itself" is one of the best movies of 2014. It a powerful and glorious film about the long career of a film critic from the Chicago Sun-Times and his courageous battle against cancer.