Sr

Netflix documentary Sr begins with Robert Downey Jr planning to make a film about his father, Robert Downey Sr, a pioneering icon in the underground scene of the 60s and 70s. But there’s a catch: for his father to agree to participate in a film about himself, he’s deceived into thinking he’ll be making his own documentary project alongside his son’s. This trickery only half works, though. He seems to be aware that this is a ploy for director Chris Smith (Fyre: The Greatest Party that Never Happened) to get to know him better, and so he refuses to give straight answers to Smith’s questions and begins to hijack the filming. An editing bay is even set up in his home. What Sr becomes is a love letter to a father and his legacy.

The film begins as an attempt for the actor to get to know his father and gradually evolves into an exploration of his films and work as an artist, before it switches gears once again and transforms into an intimate reflection on their father-son relationship as the older Downey enters the final months of his life. There are several layers to this documentary, each becoming more poignant and revealing than the last in its search for deeper meaning. Throughout, though, the genuine love this family have for each other and the creative process is unmistakable.

Downey’s filmography is a collection of no-budget, anti-establishment comedies like Putney Swope and Greaser’s Palace. They were offbeat oddballs shot on 16mm black-and-white film (provided he could afford film stock for the shoot) that were as in-your-face and absurd as what John Waters was doing around the same time. And while this doc is nowhere near as outrageous as Downey’s artistry, it nevertheless shares the same kind of off-the-cuff looseness he was known for (it’s even presented in greyscale). In its own way, this homage to the filmmaker’s work makes this tribute more personal.

All through his life, Downey Jr has been immersed in the world of filmmaking. Cinema is at the centre of some of his earliest and happiest memories, and he has his father to thank for it all. This documentary is his means of doing just that, and it does so in the most sincere and heartfelt ways.

Andrew Murray

Sr is released on Netflix on 2^nd December 2022.

Watch the trailer for Sr here: