To do a really good film about Richard Pryor, one of my favorite comedians, all you really need is footage of his comedy and a few explanations. This film gives us endless chatter and only a few glimpses at his actual performances. Even worse, a lot of the chatter is repetitive, and some of the speakers offer nothing at all. What a waste.

I am Richard Pryor was well-received during its world premiere at Austin's SXSW Film Festival. The film paints a powerful picture of a transformative comic figure. Through footage of his performances and interviews with his friends and colleagues it presents a full picture of Pryor's dark and troubled life. It starts with his deeply troubled and traumatic childhood and shows how those events surely shaped his life which included both his genius and also his aberrant destructive behavior including his heavy drug use. His talent and his comedic influence as both a purveyor and a shaper of the complex times in which he lived are examined. The film is well-constructed as it covers the arc of his career which went through a number of stages as both a comic and actor. Fans of his work and students of comedy will greatly enjoy this film.

From the start it makes itself clear that it's going to be serious and dramatic...and it's Richard Pryor, a comedic legend.

He had a troubled life, everyone that's a fan knows it. But, I guess I was thinking that they were going to cover the good parts of his life, I thought they were going to cover more of the comedy.

It was depressing and, well, you see a name like Richard Pryor and you expect to laugh and instead it makes you cry.

That's not how I want to remember him, and honestly, I don't think that's how he would want to be remembered.