This gentle and elegiac Amazon original production poses certain questions about identity and how to live a good life by examining that of Val Kilmer, the movie actor. Not too long ago Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer and after an operation he was able to retain his existence but his ability to speak – something that, for an actor, is of cardinal importance – was curtailed. To speak now Kilmer must use his finger to close a hole in his throat while he moves his lips and tongue and expels air through his mouth. Even if he does all these things in concert, however, his voice is hard to understand and his diction is cramped.
Kilmer’s financial situation is precarious. He underwrote some of his father’s property speculations so lost a good deal of money that way. Then there was his divorce. Because he declined a second ‘Batman’ movie he never entered the lists of mega-rich movie stars, and the culmination of the years has left the man with two children who love him (he lives next-door to his daughter) and a warehouse full of video tapes.
Here the directors had a treasure trove of material to draw on as they constructed a portrait of the man, and they took advantage of all of it when putting together this movie. What’s most decisive about it is the man himself, a kind of resigned jester who ekes out a living signing autographs at Comic Con and similar events held around the United States from time to time. These gatherings take their toll on a frail body and the pathos of Kilmer is striking, like Mickey Rourke in 2008’s ‘The Wrestler’, which chronicles the life of an ageing fighter. A singular difference divides the two portraits because Kilmer is close to his children whereas Randy "The Ram" Robinson doesn’t get along with his daughter.
Kilmer’s son voiced the narration for Poo and Scott’s film, which I strongly recommend for your viewing hours. It runs to just over 90 minutes.
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