DOCUMENTARY DIRECTED BY: BRENT HODGE & DERIK MURRAY
REVIEW By: Fridae Mattas
On Monday August 10th, SpikeTV is having "Chris Farley Day" in memorium of the late funny man. It also holds a specific purpose, SpikeTV will air a few of Farley's hit flicks back to back building up to the 9pm eastern time premier of "I Am Chris Farley". When I first went to write this review it was to be on the film "Trainwreck". Then, I remembered seeing this doc a few weeks back and how much joy Chris Farley brought to my family as we grew up. When my childhood friend who was obsessed with him and is like 35 years his junior told me his birthday, I always remembered because it was a day before mine. It was a sad day when I saw on the news that he died. Chris Farley had a hilarious collection of skits and films, One of the memorable SNL characters Farley portrayed is motivational speaker "Matt Foley" who lived in a van down by the river! Believe it or not, Matt Foley is a real person and is interviewed in this documentary. Highly doubt he lives in a van down by the river, but you will see why I assume this when you watch the film...
Chris Farley is among the few Comics my Dad thought was hilarious, the film he liked the most was "Tommy Boy". This was partially due to the fact his name in English was Tom and people often refered to him as Tommy. My favorite scenes in the film are "Maniac" and the "Fat Guy In a Little Coat" scene. When I first saw "Tommy Boy" as a kid with my Dad and siblings, those two scenes had all of us in tears! I remember my face and stomach hurt from laughing so hard. This documentary, directed by Brent Hodge and Derik Murray captured a special look into Chris' life, from the early years, to the highs and through the lows. His brother Kevin Farley opens the film driving through their old neighbourhood reminiscing about their time as kids. The film holds a star studded cast of Farley's family, past work mates and friends expressing their opinions and remembering memories of their time with him. It was all very sad, comics make everyone laugh, except for the people they should be making happy, themselves. As time has shown so many entertainers take their lives because they are miserable, some even trapped. Farley was one of those beings, absolutely hilarious, gifted and loving yet, he was so unhappy. There is a reason why Farley couldn't get clean and the answer died with him...Or maybe he didn't even know the answer.
From what I gather, he was like every chubby Aquarian male wanting to do what he loved and be loved by everyone. But, not everyone loved Farley, he took criticism very personal and it affected his confidence. Obviously he had Peter Pan Syndrome and other complexes that needed some theraputic attention. Once SNL ended for him, that was when he was taken out of his comfort zone, his anxiety and insecurities overwhelmed him. Like many people fighting their inner demons and going through life's hardships, Farley chose to deal with his issues by getting high and drunk as fuck! Sadly, in the end, his inner demons won.
Wish I had met Chris Farley because everyone who had the pleasure of meeting him told me he was such a sweetheart. I believe it, we Aquarians are hilariously entertaining and the nicest, most loyal sometimes shy people you'll ever meet. Many at first often mistake me for being a bitch before they know me because of my unfiltered honesty or resting bitch face. A few huge comedians I have come across were complete dickfaces! They shall remain nameless assholes because they do not deserve any publicity. I've even been heckled by a comic and soon realized that it was his ploy to get me backstage after his set...In your dreams, I'm not a fame starved groupie. In the film many people like Mike Myers and Adam Sandler looked like they we're desperately trying not to cry as was David Spade, who was probably the closest of the bunch to Farley, he visually appeared ill. The film was well done, but as a documentary it needed a few more skits and candid clips off stage, it was missing something to me. If you want a little peek into the life of Chris Farley this is the film you should see! Rest in paradise Chris Farley, your work still brings joy to many people. Check your local listings and grab a tissue.