Another review of another film without audio description. Netflix is hosting this, and despite its lack of accessibility, I tend to be interested in documentaries about film, actors, and directors. I don’t know why. It’s just so weird. So I naturally felt compelled to watch the Gene Wilder doc, and hear from all these people about what a terrific man he was. Not only does gene ruminate on his own life, but creatives from Mel Brooks to Eric McCormack discuss the impact of Gene Wilder across his various projects. We hear about how Gene adored the late Gilda Radner, as well as his second wife, who took care of him after his Alzheimer’s diagnoses.
I’ve comparatively seen little of Wilder’s filmography, but he’s impossible to forget as Willy Wonka. He set the tone, the standard, and it is so hard to think of that movie being received as some kind of flop.
I normally just spend some time talking about how the film is unwatchable without audio description. Truthfully, there’s very little wiggle room here, and the description we would get wouldn’t dramatically change the film that much. When Wilder isn’t talking about himself, someone else is. It makes it really hard to interject. I would prefer audio description, as i was not always sure who the person was that was talking, but I think that unwatchable is a bit of a stretch, and likely a protest grade. I want to use it when appropriate, but here, I think you’ll get through the film. It might not be the best, or easiest documentary to follow, but if you are a Gene Wilder fan, I’m not sure it will stop you.
It is a safe documentary centered around a rather uncomplicated man, with decent participation. It is just perfectly OK, but other documentaries are structured better, and dig deeper. This is just fine.
Final Grade: B