TV legend Norman Lear hits the big screen
May we all live long enough to be as happy as Norman Lear. The producer who transformed TV comedy in the 1970s with hits including "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons" turned 94 last month, and is tickled to be able to impress people just by entering a room under his own power. He does much more than that in the doc "Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You" (⋆⋆⋆½, not rated, playing at the Lagoon). Lear went into therapy in his 80s as part of the process of writing his 2014 memoir, "Even This I Get to Experience," and the documentary's directors may have benefited, too, from the ensuing excavation, which included memories of his father, a small-time criminal whose attitudes and expressions — including "Stifle!" — inspired Archie Bunker. The film features interviews with the producer and others who were there for the peak of his success — and, perhaps, his arrogance. And in capturing a man in his 10th decade who remains as curious as ever, the movie offers hope that age is, after all, just another number.
Ellen Gray, Philadelphia Daily News
