There's a lot of heart in this documentary, and the fact that it's all in Stan's voice makes it very unique, but also somewhat one-sided.
It's interesting to see the life of this man, who rose from a measly go-getter in a small comic cook company, to become its publisher while touching lightly on what he went through personally during that time.
There's a lot of focus on the creation of certain characters and how they fitted in the comics, Stan's philosophy to creating heroes and stories, which is all very interesting considering his lengthy career.
That said, it's a shame there sin't more about the man he was beyond the comic books.
It did a little bit of a dive into the altercations with Ditko and Kirby, but didn't have much beyond that. They mention for a minute or two his relationship with Joan, and that they had a daughter, but that's pretty much it. From after Marvel being sold - which the movie doesn't say why or to whom - to the 2010s, there's a huge skip where we don't get to see what Stan did, and mind you that's a 40 year gap. It's a shame we didn't get to see a bit more of what happened to Stan away from Marvel or his opinions on what happened to his characters afterwards. To me that seems like a missed opportunity.
It's a lovely tribute to a man who feels at times like a larger-than-life character, who created some of the most iconic characters in modern media. I just wish it told us more of the man, less of the icon he has become over time.
It's interesting to see the life of this man, who rose from a measly go-getter in a small comic cook company, to become its publisher while touching lightly on what he went through personally during that time.
There's a lot of focus on the creation of certain characters and how they fitted in the comics, Stan's philosophy to creating heroes and stories, which is all very interesting considering his lengthy career.
That said, it's a shame there sin't more about the man he was beyond the comic books.
It did a little bit of a dive into the altercations with Ditko and Kirby, but didn't have much beyond that. They mention for a minute or two his relationship with Joan, and that they had a daughter, but that's pretty much it. From after Marvel being sold - which the movie doesn't say why or to whom - to the 2010s, there's a huge skip where we don't get to see what Stan did, and mind you that's a 40 year gap. It's a shame we didn't get to see a bit more of what happened to Stan away from Marvel or his opinions on what happened to his characters afterwards. To me that seems like a missed opportunity.
It's a lovely tribute to a man who feels at times like a larger-than-life character, who created some of the most iconic characters in modern media. I just wish it told us more of the man, less of the icon he has become over time.