Quartile rating: 6.5/10 · 1 rating
Using previously unheard audiotapes recorded shortly after John Belushi’s death, director R.J. Cutler’s documentary feature examines the too-short life of the once-in-a-generation talent who captured the hearts and funny bones of devoted audiences.
Belushi (2020) is a solid documentary portrait elevated by the previously unheard audiotapes that give it a sense of intimacy and immediacy. The narrative arc follows Belushi's rise and tragic fall with genuine emotional weight, benefiting from candid celebrity interviews and rich archival material. However, the structural approach is fairly conventional for a music/comedy biography doc — talking heads, archival clips, narrated timeline — keeping Cinematography and overall novelty from standing out. The ending is appropriately somber and reflective given the subject's overdose death, but doesn't transcend the expected. Acting is not a primary category for a documentary, though interview subjects come across as genuine and unguarded. Overall a competent, heartfelt tribute that will satisfy fans without redefining the documentary form.