The Bill Murray Stories: Life Lessons Learned from a Mythical Man

The strange behavior of Bill Murray off camera is a fact that many probably already are aware of....at least to a point. I knew that Murray liked to occasionally drop in on weddings and other celebrations unannounced. He apparently doesn't come to spoil the celebrations in any way...but likes to join in with the fun with huge groups of strangers. However, "The Bill Murray Stories" exposes not just him crashing weddings and parties but much more. He apparently just loves being with people and it's almost like a form of performance art! The film details example after example of his antics....all harmless and odd....and it also tries to help understand WHY and WHO Murray is and why this is something he's famous for doing. A truly odd documentary about a truly odd man....well worth seeing but probably not a big surprise to many, as Murray is famous for this sort of thing.

This documentary must have been as satisfying to make as it was to watch. It's genuinely evident that the film maker not only learned the most important lesson about Bill Murray, but an even more important lesson about why Bill Murray is what he is: A genuinely great, and thus rare kind of person. The same philosophy applies to this film within it's genre. Genuinely great, and like a perfect steak, it's quite rare.

The Bill Murray Stories is a documentary by a Murray fan that starts by recapping a bunch of the tales of how Murray intersects people's lives in ways that seem odd for a celebrity, and then explores how these stories tell us something about Murray and the life lessons we should take from him. On that level, it's very successful and well done. My only complaints are that the filmmaker inserts himself into the movie a little too much -- and especially in ways that make you think he hasn't internalized the things that he's saying make Murray so appealing. (And a couple of scenes with the filmmaker seem contrived -- as if they were a film school assignment.) My second complaint is that the movie doesn't explore/address some of the possible darkness in Murray. There is no attempt to deal with the drunken golf cart ride or allegations by his ex-wife. Don't get me wrong: I'm okay with a certain amount of mythologizing. And I do love this movie, but a more rounded picture of the man would've upped my 8 to a 9 or 10.

I thought this was a great doco, sitting down to watch it I was hesitant, but it really shows the character of Bill Murray as well as some of the fun stuff he gets up too. I would say if more celebrities got up to this, but I am glad they don't so we can see Bill in his full and fun self.

This is how all documentaries should be done. No political agendas, just fact finding and story telling. Loved it.