Delayed Reaction: Life Itself

The Pitch: Let's figure out why Roger Ebert is someone we all know.

This is where I include the realization that I'm writing a review about a movie about a man who wrote reviews of movies just like this.

Sometimes, all a documentary needs to be is a substitute for a Wikipedia article. I know of Roger Ebert more than I know about him. It's a name that I've known as long as I can remember. Why do I know him though? What made him or Siskel or "two thumbs up" so well known? Life Itself does a fine job covering Ebert's life in a variety of ways. It doesn't get into any one topic in much detail because there isn't the time. That's fine. It covers his origin, the Pulitzer, his relationship with Gene Siskel, Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, Cannes, and his later jawless years when he developed a strong online presence. Personally, I'm more interested in the reviews and his process for those, but I understand the broad approach the film takes instead.

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend