John Candy: I Like Me is available to stream on Prime Video for those with an Amazon Prime subscription, and it's an absolute treat. That's not just because the film highlights Candy and the roles he played so well, but because it's absolutely stacked with celebrities sharing their stories about him. It took a lot of work to pull together, though, as director Colin Hanks confirmed to CinemaBlend that Martin Short warned him as much when they spoke about it.
Short is one of many stars who shares recollections of Candy in the documentary and, when CinemaBlend spoke to Hanks ahead of its release, he confirmed how tough it was incorporating interviewees. That said, Hanks knew what he was going to get into, as Short was one of the first to bring up what a logistical nightmare it may be to organize not just because of who they were trying to get, but who would want to be involved:
It took longer, simple as that. Martin Short said very, very early on, when I was talking with him at the very beginning of all this, he said, ‘You know, no one is gonna say no to you. Like, it's gonna be a problem for you, so you gotta be careful who you go to because everyone's gonna wanna do it.’ He wasn't wrong. Everyone we spoke to expressed interest and wanted to do it.
Hanks joked that had it not been for celebrity schedules, he might've gotten John Candy: I Like Me finished in a month. As producer Ryan Reynolds brought up, it took months just to wrangle some stars like Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd for interviews. Making this documentary was no small feat, even if there were a ton of celebrities who wanted to do it.
It's the latest doc from Colin Hanks, who is more known for his acting, as well as being the son of "nice guy" Tom Hanks (who's also in the doc). The director had some apprehension after working on Eagles Of Death Metal: Nos Amis (Our Friends), which covered a terrorist attack that occurred during the band's show in Paris in 2015. Hanks talked about that movie and how his experience on it allowed him to lean in more while making John Candy: I Like Me:
The big takeaway from the last doc was leaning into those things that make you uncomfortable so that you can explore things and themes that maybe you wouldn't have landed on. Discomfort is actually a good thing, not a bad thing. And so I sort of reminded myself of that and said, OK, well, at least this isn't, you know, involving a terrorist attack. So let's lean in a little bit here, and I'm really happy with what we landed on.
As someone who enjoyed the documentary, I'm also happy with what they landed on. It's awesome to see I Like Me to lean into the late star's larger-than-life persona as shown on the big screen, but also highlight the crushing anxiety he experienced as his fame grew.
Despite that, John Candy always found a way to put his best foot forward and be an inspiration to everyone, from his peers at Second City to up-and-coming comedians at the time like Conan O'Brien. Then there's the influence he's had more recently, and the way tributes to him are peppered into franchises like Deadpool and Family Guy.
I Like Me is a great watch, even those who aren't as familiar with Candy's work. It also helps that Amazon now hosts a bunch of Candy's movies on Prime Video, which will allow the less familiar to see some of the greatest comedic performances of the past few decades. I can't recommend this film enough and, while it was a pain for Colin Hanks and co. to wrangle so many celebrities who wanted to be a part of it, the effort was well worth it.
Stream John Candy: I Like Me on Prime Video now. I would love to see Amazon continue this trend of biographical documentaries and, hopefully, the success of this project will lead to similar productions down the road.
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