This review was originally part of our coverage of the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
Back in the 80s and 90s. Michael J. Fox was always on the run. It’s something you don’t really think about until the director Davis Guggenheim shows Fox’s montage in motion throughout his film and television career. At the beginning of a Guggenheim documentary on Fox’s life and work Still Life: A Film by Michael J. Fox, it shows Fox going for a walk now, decades after he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. But when Fox walks, it looks like he’s still trying to rush, still trying to move at the same pace, a man who doesn’t let his illness define him. When a woman is talking to him on the street, he is distracted from his walk and falls. But instead of resigning himself to defeat, he jokes, gets up again and continues to move forward. It is this spirit and determination that makes Fox such a beloved figure and makes Still Life: A Film by Michael J. Fox such a compelling documentary.
Still begins by showing the first signs of Fox’s Parkinson’s diagnosis, back in 1990, when he was alone in Florida and worried why his finger wouldn’t stop moving. The Guggenheim then comes back to present Fox’s life before this illness, a child who was smaller than everyone else and found his calling in acting. It’s especially interesting to learn about Fox’s beginnings, his father who was completely confident that his son would succeed, and when Fox became a struggling actor, selling his furniture for money and saving up jelly bags for food.
But as soon as Fox gets Family bondshe becomes a star, and after Back to the Future along the way, he has reached the absurd level of superstardom. We see how he filmed both Family bonds And Back to the Future at the same time the celebrity who hit him in the head and the way his wife Tracy Pollan helped bring him back to earth. Showcasing Fox’s life, the Guggenheim recreates those moments through stills from Fox’s TV shows and films, as well as entertainment. Guggenheim often tries to blend them, and it works surprisingly well. That said, the film’s occasional reliance on entertainment is sometimes inconvenient, but thankfully, those moments are quite rare.
But these entertainments are not so necessary, since the best parts Still when Fox and the Guggenheim are just talking about Fox’s life, his struggle with illness, and his outlook on his life. We see how often Fox falls and gets hurt as he usually shows up with a new injury or bruise. However, Fox never talks about pain until Guggenheim asks him about it directly. Fox states that he is always in pain, but this is a sign of his resilience and love for making others happy, which apparently keeps Fox from making pain the focus of his life.
Guggenheim uses Still to show that even decades after he was diagnosed, Fox is still the same guy that many of us loved, still witty and funny. Guggenheim will contrast with a great clip of Fox improvising on the set of the movie. Family bonds with a clip of the interview now where he’s just as hilarious. Guggenheim is careful never to make a film about the disease, but rather about Fox’s impressive life and career - Parkinson’s is just part of that.
Fox is generous and open with himself, delving into his failures as a father and husband, his problems with alcoholism, and his lifestyle at the peak of his career, which some may find unpleasant. Guggenheim, understandably, never pays too much attention to the negative connotations Fox throws down. However, for a documentary that tries to give us a full look at the past, present, and where it might go in the future, it seems strange to largely gloss over the darker sides of Fox’s life. Fox seems more than willing to go dark, but Guggenheim would rather show the positive side of his hero and friend.
But with all the desire to avoid dark topics and dubious memories of the past, Still Life: A Film by Michael J. Fox thrives on Fox and it’s hard not to admire the man, and nostalgia for all the roles Fox has shown has always been an interesting and wonderful performer. Still Life: A Film by Michael J. Fox can be a little standard when it comes to biographical documentaries, but when the focus is on someone just like Fox, it’s hard to care too much about form when the content is so captivating.
Rating: B
Still Life: A Film by Michael J. Fox available for streaming on Apple TV+.
Source: Collider
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