When a son is making a documentary about his father, you’re going to get a lot of love, but maybe not a lot of objectivity about what will make for a good movie. Adam Nimoy completes a project begun before the 2015 death of his dad—
Star Trek icon Leonard Nimoy—in a film that ranges from the actor’s childhood, to his creation of Mr. Spock, and through the impact of that one famous character on the rest of his professional and personal life. Nimoy
fils isn’t unwilling to dig into the less-than-ideal parts of his dad’s story, including his alcoholism, resulting in something that feels generally honest and at times pleasantly goofy in its archival footage of stuff like Leonard’s would-be music career. But there’s virtually no flow to any of the material, which bounces between interviews (featuring cast members from the original
Trek and the new movie series), anecdotes, archival footage and analysis. The result just feels like an information dump, so concerned with not leaving out a single fond recollection or quirky bit of trivia that it never becomes a story.
By
Scott Renshaw