I Am Heath Ledger

Last updated

I Am Heath Ledger
I Am Heath Ledger poster.jpg
Written byHart Snider
Directed by
  • Derik Murray
  • Adrian Buitehuis
Starring Heath Ledger
Music byDavid Ramos
Original languageEnglish
Production
Running time90 minutes
Production companyNetwork Entertainment
Original release
Release11 May 2017 (2017-05-11)

I Am Heath Ledger is a 2017 Paramount Network documentary film about actor Heath Ledger, who died in 2008. Directed by Adrian Buitenhuis and Derik Murray, the film presents interviews with Ledger's family, friends and collaborators. [1]

Contents

Notably Michelle Williams, ex-partner of Ledger and mother of his daughter Matilda, was not in the film.

Production

Ledger's family agreed to participate only after Williams "gave her blessing" and when Ledger's friend Matt Amato got involved in the project. [2]

Reception

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an aggregate score of 86% based on 25 positive and 4 negative critic reviews. The websites consensus reads: " I Am Heath Ledger takes a poignant, absorbing look at the private life and process of a talented star doomed to meet a tragic end." [3]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Damon</span> American actor (born 1970)

Matthew Paige Damon is an American actor, film producer, and screenwriter. Ranked among Forbes' most bankable stars in 2007, the films in which he has appeared have collectively earned over $3.88 billion at the North American box office, making him one of the highest-grossing actors of all time. He has received various awards and nominations, including an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards, in addition to nominations for three British Academy Film Awards and seven Primetime Emmy Awards.

<i>I Am Sam</i> 2001 American drama film by Jessie Nelson

I Am Sam is a 2001 American drama film co-written and directed by Jessie Nelson. It stars Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianne Wiest, Dakota Fanning, Elle Fanning, Richard Schiff, Loretta Devine and Laura Dern.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt LeBlanc</span> American actor (born 1967)

Matthew Steven LeBlanc is an American actor. He garnered global recognition with his portrayal of Joey Tribbiani in the NBC sitcom Friends and in its spin-off series, Joey. For his work on Friends, LeBlanc received three nominations at the Primetime Emmy Awards. He has also starred as a fictionalized version of himself in Episodes (2011–2017), for which he won a Golden Globe Award and received four additional Emmy Award nominations. He co-hosted Top Gear from 2016 to 2019. From 2016 to 2020, he played patriarch Adam Burns in the CBS sitcom Man with a Plan.

<i>10 Things I Hate About You</i> 1999 American film by Gil Junger

10 Things I Hate About You is a 1999 American teen romantic comedy film directed by Gil Junger in his film directorial debut and starring Julia Stiles, Heath Ledger, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Larisa Oleynik. The screenplay by Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith is a modernization of William Shakespeare's comedy The Taming of the Shrew, retold in a late-1990s American high school setting. The film follows new student Cameron James (Gordon-Levitt) who is smitten with Bianca Stratford (Oleynik) and attempts to get bad boy Patrick Verona (Ledger) to date her antisocial sister Kat (Stiles) in order to get around her father's strict rules on dating. Named after a poem Kat writes about her romance with Patrick, the film was mostly shot in the Seattle metropolitan area, with many scenes filmed at Stadium High School in Tacoma, Washington.

<i>Jack</i> (1996 film) 1996 film by Francis Ford Coppola

Jack is a 1996 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The film stars Robin Williams, Diane Lane, Jennifer Lopez, Brian Kerwin, Fran Drescher and Bill Cosby. Williams plays the role of Jack Powell, a boy who ages four times faster than normal as a result of a unique medical condition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michelle Williams (actress)</span> American actress

Michelle Ingrid Williams is an American actress. Known primarily for starring in small-scale independent films with dark or tragic themes, she has received various accolades, including two Golden Globe Awards and a Primetime Emmy Award, in addition to nominations for five Academy Awards and a Tony Award.

<i>Hot Shots! Part Deux</i> 1993 US parody film by Jim Abrahams

Hot Shots! Part Deux is a 1993 American parody film directed by Jim Abrahams. It stars Charlie Sheen, Lloyd Bridges, Valeria Golino, Richard Crenna, Brenda Bakke, Miguel Ferrer, Rowan Atkinson, and Jerry Haleva. Sheen, who portrays a spoof of John Rambo, went through a tough weight lifting/training program to gain the physique needed to play the role of an action hero. A sequel to Hot Shots! (1991) and the second installment in the Hot Shots franchise, the movie primarily spoofs the 1980s action films Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) and Rambo III (1988).

<i>The Taste of Others</i> 2000 French film

The Taste of Others is a 2000 French film. It was directed by Agnès Jaoui, and written by her and Jean-Pierre Bacri. It stars Jean-Pierre Bacri, Anne Alvaro, Alain Chabat, Agnès Jaoui, Gérard Lanvin and Christiane Millet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heath Ledger</span> Australian actor (1979–2008)

Heath Andrew Ledger was an Australian actor. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, he moved to the United States in 1998 to further develop his film career. His work consisted of 20 films in a variety of genres, including 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), The Patriot (2000), A Knight's Tale (2001), Monster's Ball (2001), Casanova (2005), Lords of Dogtown (2005), Brokeback Mountain (2005), Candy (2006), I'm Not There (2007), The Dark Knight (2008), and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), the latter two of which were posthumously released. He also produced and directed music videos and aspired to be a film director.

<i>The House Bunny</i> 2008 American film

The House Bunny is a 2008 American comedy film directed by Fred Wolf, written by the writing team of Karen McCullah Lutz and Kirsten Smith, and produced by Adam Sandler, Jack Giarraputo, Anna Faris, Allen Covert, and Heather Parry. The film stars Faris, Colin Hanks, and Emma Stone, and tells the story of a former Playboy bunny who signs up to be the "house mother" of an unpopular university sorority after finding out she must leave the Playboy Mansion.

Joker (<i>The Dark Knight</i>) Fictional character in the 2008 film The Dark Knight

The Joker is a character portrayed by Heath Ledger and the main antagonist in Christopher Nolan's 2008 superhero film The Dark Knight. Based on the DC Comics supervillain of the same name, he is depicted as a psychopathic criminal mastermind with a warped, sadistic sense of humor who defines himself by his conflict with the vigilante Batman. In the film, the Joker tests how far Batman will go to save Gotham City from descending into chaos by targeting the Caped Crusader's allies, including police lieutenant James Gordon and district attorney Harvey Dent.

<i>Blue Valentine</i> (film) 2010 American romantic drama film by Derek Cianfrance

Blue Valentine is a 2010 American romantic drama film written and directed by Derek Cianfrance. Cianfrance, Cami Delavigne, and Joey Curtis wrote the film, and the band Grizzly Bear scored it. Blue Valentine depicts a married couple, played by Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling, shifting back and forth in time between their courtship and the dissolution of their marriage several years later.

<i>Cause an Effect</i> 2006 studio album by Nfa

Cause an Effect is the first album by the former 1200 Techniques frontman, N'fa. The Australian hip hop artist collaborated with various producers around the world including Roots Manuva, Mr Yoshiaki, DJ Peril and Deceptikonz. Three singles were released from the album, "Seduction Is Evil ", "Cause an Effect" and "Universal King ". The actor Heath Ledger conceived and directed two music videos for the album, "Seduction Is Evil ", and the title track "Cause an Effect", with the latter being edited by Matt Amato from Amato and Ledger's production company, The Masses.

<i>Dreams of a Life</i> 2011 British film

Dreams of a Life is a 2011 drama-documentary film, released by Dogwoof Pictures, directed by Carol Morley and starring Zawe Ashton as Joyce Carol Vincent, a London woman whose remains were discovered in her home in 2006, just over two years after she had died.

<i>I Am Divine</i> 2013 film by Jeffrey Schwarz

I Am Divine is a 2013 American documentary film produced and directed by Jeffrey Schwarz of the Los Angeles-based production company Automat Pictures. The documentary focuses on the American actor, singer and drag performer Divine, born Harris Glenn Milstead, a lifelong friend and collaborator of filmmaker John Waters.

<i>I Am Not Your Negro</i> 2016 documentary by Raoul Peck

I Am Not Your Negro is a 2016 German-American documentary film and social critique film essay directed by Raoul Peck, based on James Baldwin's unfinished manuscript Remember This House. Narrated by actor Samuel L. Jackson, the film explores the history of racism in the United States through Baldwin's recollections of civil rights leaders Medgar Evers, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr., as well as his personal observations of American history. It was nominated for Best Documentary Feature at the 89th Academy Awards and won the BAFTA Award for Best Documentary.

<i>The Rider</i> (film) 2017 film by Chloé Zhao

The Rider is a 2017 American contemporary western film written, produced and directed by Chloé Zhao. The film stars Brady Jandreau, Lilly Jandreau, Tim Jandreau, Lane Scott, and Cat Clifford and was shot in the Badlands of South Dakota. It premiered in the Directors' Fortnight section at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20, 2017, where it won the Art Cinema Award. It was released in theaters in the United States on April 13, 2018. It grossed $4 million and was critically praised for its story, performances, and the depiction of the people and events that influenced the film.

<i>Whitney: Can I Be Me</i> 2017 documentary film directed by Rudi Dolezal and Nick Broomfield

Whitney: Can I Be Me is a 2017 British-American documentary film that was written, co-produced by Nick Broomfield and directed by Broomfield and Rudi Dolezal. The film's subject is the life and career of singer Whitney Houston.

Matt Amato is an American film writer and director. His major works include music videos for artists such as Barbra Streisand, Beach House, Bon Iver, Dido, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Soko, and Wild Nothing. He also co-founded the Los Angeles based visual arts collective, The Masses. In 2020, he completed his debut feature, Never My Love. Amato is now documenting the efforts of historic preservationist Larry Giles at the National Building Arts Center. Amato's music video for Trixie Mattel and Shakey Graves was released in 2022. Amato directed the "pastoral" music video for legendary country-folk musicians and gay activists, Lavender Country, filming in Olympic National Park. Amato directed his third video for Barbra Streisand released by Columbia Records and received a Gold Telly Award in 2023.

<i>Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain</i> 2021 American film

Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain is a 2021 American documentary film directed and produced by Morgan Neville. The film had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 11, 2021, and was released in the United States on July 16, 2021, by Focus Features. The film grossed $5.5 million at the box office and received critical acclaim, but also garnered controversy over its use of artificial intelligence technology to reproduce Bourdain's voice for some audio clips.

References

  1. Buckmaster, Luke (11 May 2017). "I Am Heath Ledger review – uncommonly tender portrait avoids the hard questions". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  2. Donnelly, Joe (23 May 2017). "Heath Ledger's sister says it took blessing from Michelle Williams to get new documentary made". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 16 January 2019.
  3. "I Am Heath Ledger". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 28 January 2024.