Steve James’ Life Itself is a documentary based on film critic Roger Ebert’s autobiography. Audiences are taken on the journey of a man who truly loved (and understood) film as an art. We’re taken through every step of his life, up until his devastating battle with cancer. Life Itself tells us Roger wasn’t just a critic, he was the critic.

The film opens with Ebert in the hospital, there’s struggle but he still appreciates life. He continues writing and is still passionate about film. We then go back to his early years in Illinois. In high school, young Roger was introduced to journalism, after a stellar college career at the University of Chicago he’s led to the Chicago Sun Times. Even in his early years, he was said to be just as polished as any veteran. During these years, Ebert battles the demons of alcohol abuse and womanizing; luckily, his recovery leads to him meeting his wife Chaz and his life changing for the absolute best.

When film critics come to mind, few were as iconic as the team formed by Gene Siskel & Roger Ebert. It's hard to believe that at one point they weren’t taken seriously enough to be broadcast in New York or Los Angeles and it's even more surprising to realize that Roger and Gene were not always on good terms as we see in archival footage. However, their relationship later forms into a brotherly one and by the time of Siskel’s death, we can clearly see Roger lost one of the few friends he had.

To no surprise, the hardest moments in the film are Ebert's final days. There’s transcripts of emails to the director in which the frail Ebert confesses he doesn’t think he’ll make it, and we also see his wife's loyalty to the very end, as she stays besides him as his body betrayed him even denying him a voice of his own. Yet the film suggests that Ebert's voice would never be silenced because he wrote until the very end.

Something that sticks out like a sore thumb is the Richard Roeper's absence. There is not a single mention of him which is a little odd considering he worked with Ebert almost as long as Siskel. However, the film is still stellar and celebrates Ebert's life the way it deserves to: by reminding us of how he made a difference and influenced filmmakers like Ava Duvernay and Martin Scorsese. Walking away, you learn how vital Ebert was to Hollywood and how deeply he will be missed.