NOVEMBER 29: LIFE ITSELF
Dir: Steve James Documentary
USA 2014 115 mins With: Roger Ebert, Chaz Ebert, Martin Scorsese, Werner Herzog, Errol Morris
Adapted from his memoir of the same name, Life Itself chronicles
the life of legendary film critic Roger Ebert, from his early years in
Urbana, Illinois, through his long career in print and television and
through the courageous and painful struggles of
his final months. Acclaimed documentarian and fellow Chicagoan Steve
James began the project with Ebert’s participation, and completed the
film after his death in 2013. Ebert’s infectious enthusiasm and the
deep, abiding love of movies that emanated from every
one of his reviews won him the admiration and respect of everyone from
casual moviegoers to dedicated cinephiles to members of the film
industry itself. Through archival footage and interviews with many of
Ebert’s closest friends and collaborators—as well as
such major filmmakers as Errol Morris, Werner Herzog and Martin Scorsese
(who served as one of the film’s executive producers)—Life Itself
chronicles the many phases of Ebert’s career: his honouring with the
Pulitzer Prize (the first ever awarded for film criticism),
his television career with long-time friend and sparring partner Gene
Siskel, his devoted relationship with his wife Chaz, and the serious
health problems that plagued him in his later years, which resulted in
the loss of his voice and led him to embrace new
technologies in order to communicate, blogging and tweeting constantly
until his death. Throughout, Ebert retained his love of film, writing,
and life itself.
The trailer:
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