sadraccoon

This is a documentary that unfolds mostly Kanye's way to being a famous rapper, with very little focus on his personal life. While it is well made and interesting even for someone who isn't a Kanye West fan, it feels like something is missing throughout the documentary. I had a hard time trying to put my finger on what it was, and a few days after watching the documentary I realised I was yet, once again looking at Kanye's life from the outside. I got an overwhelming feeling of emptiness and loneliness watching this documentary. It feels as if he has always been the odd one, always an outsider, even after he accomplished his dream of becoming a world-famous rapper. I learnt a lot about his career, his skills, the people he worked with, but was once again left with the question: who actually is Kanye West? I wonder if anyone knows. I wonder if Kanye himself knows. Even if this big question is left unanswered (for me at least), I very much enjoyed this documentary, the different thoughts and perspectives it offered and how he made it to the very special position he is in today.

As Netflix describes this documentary, it is truly emotional from beginning to end. In the beginning we find out that the son and brother of a British family committed suicide 13 years earlier. The movie is not only about remembering and honouring Evelyn, who took his own life, but showing the long struggle of the family - especially Evelyn's siblings - and how coping with such an enormous loss seems to be almost impossible for the people who loved him the most. This movie is a journey from fear, silence and maybe even denial to something that slowly develops into acceptance, talking and coping with the loss. Apart from the camera work that was from time to time very poor, and therefore took much more space in the film than it should have , the movie is so beautiful and painful one will not easily forget about Evelyn and his family. The viewer is being reminded of all the good that Evelyn brought to people's lives as well as the agony he left behind. There's a bittersweet balance between these two perspectives in this film. It is also acknowledged - both during and after the movie - how sadly common suicides are and how the stigma should be reduced. Talking about suicide and personal experiences around the subject is brilliantly being "passed on" to the viewer as something that should and needs to be done. "Being weak is ok" seems to be one of the mottos of the movie - and that is a wonderful way to send out support to other people who might be going through the same thing in their lives and/or social circles.