Life Itself
Say the name Roger Ebert and little more has to be explained. The Pulitzer-Prize winning, legendary film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times and author of the script to Russ Meyer’s Beyond the Valley of the Dolls was a man of tremendous erudition and cutting pen, a cinephile, who could rave as powerfully as he could pan, which he faithfully did in his reviews. Steve James’ documentary is a nuanced story about Ebert’s life and career, his youth and early stints in student papers, rising fame and alcoholism. It talks about working in television and the difficult relationship with his on-screen partner, Gene Siskel. It is also the story of a years-long battle with cancer, which ended fatally last year. Interviews include Ebert’s family members as well as famous filmmakers such as Martin Scorsese and Werner Herzog. All of this paints an image of a man of unusual intellect who had to struggle with a capricious ego and the limitations of his own body.
Steve James
An American director and producer. He was born in 1955 in Hampton, Virginia, graduated from James Madison University. He specializes in documentary film and claims the film that influenced him to go into documentary filmmaking was Barbara Kopple’s Oscar-winning Harlan County, USA. James’ best-known films include Hoop Dreams, about kids with NBA aspirations and The Interrupters, about urban violence.
Selected filmography
1994 W obręczy marzeń / Hoop Dreams (doc.)
2002 Stevie (doc.)
2008 Kapelan domu śmierci / At the Death House Door (doc.)
2011 The Interrupters (doc.)
2014 Po prostu życie / Life Itself (doc.)
