Super Frat

I Am is an incredibly ambitious documentary that more people should see, but probably won’t, despite the fact that it is directed by Ace Ventura director, Tom Shadyac.

The basic “plot” is a true story.  Tom had a bike accident at the height of his career that left him in constant pain.  Months later, as he started to recover, he reexamined his life.  What he found was that, even though he was making people laugh with his movies, he wasn’t making the world a better place.

This film attempts to analyze that and ask the questions, “What’s wrong with our world?” and “What can we do about it?”  It’s pretty heady stuff, but inspirational.

Watching Tom struggle with this topic on screen, I got the real sense that this journey was all knew to him.  And, despite his success, he wasn’t happy.  There’s a lot of interesting scientific stuff about how matter is connected and how we are all connected genetically.  I would’ve liked to have see more stuff about how rich people aren’t happy.  (Not because I want to see people be sad, but I have my own theories in that area.)

It’s heady stuff.  Kind of like an office visit with a philosophy professor.  It’s kind of entertaining, but that’s not really the point.  It’s more about making you think and, on that level, I think the film succeeds.

I give I Am 8.5 keggers out of 10.  Rent it or go to the theater, but definitely check it out.