[usr 2.5]
Through the eyes of the greatest athletes of all time, “In Search of Greatness” is a cinematic journey into the secrets of genius.
Back in 2014, filmmaker Gabe Polsky directed “Red Army,” a sharp documentary about the Soviet Union’s Red Army hockey team, told from the perspective of its captain, Slava Fetisov. Polsky’s film portrayed how the sport reflected the tumultuous political changes the country was going through. Now he returns to his favorite sport, albeit from a different perspective. Instead of Fetisov, Polsky’s subject is now Wayne Gretzky, as well as football star Jerry Rice and soccer star Pelé. Instead of examining how a country’s regime can affect a sport, Polsky now takes a look at what makes a human being “great,” with decidedly mixed results.
Where “Red Army” was sympathetic and poignant, with a distinct voice and a razor focus, “In Search of Greatness” is strangely distant and blank. Yes, Polsky certainly sounds enthused to be talking to those stars, but he never truly digs deep, or gets tongue-in-cheek, or challenges his subjects. Instead, we get some pseudo-analysis on the roots of “greatness” – e.g. “there is no such thing as a sports gene” – and obvious rhetoric, like how most athletes were in awe of their respective sport from an early age, or how you can’t always rely on physical statistics to determine genius.
In addition, there are clumsy interludes, wherein Polsky throws some music legends like Michael Jackson and David Bowie into the mix, juxtaposing archival footage of Hendrix jamming out on stage against footage of Serena Williams slamming it on the court. At this rate, why not throw in filmmaking, writing bestsellers and being the president for good measure, and make it a series? Ironically, as a result, Polsky never connects his scattered dots; the film never truly explores “greatness,” hopping from place to place like an athlete on steroids. Sure, archival footage of John McEnroe losing it on the court is entertaining, but you can YouTube that stuff.
It would have been more effective if Polsky put all that effort he invested into trying to research “greatness” into securing some more compelling interviews. As it tends to happen, the subjects comprise the best parts of Polsky’s film – particularly Gretzky, a sophisticated gentleman, eloquently recollecting his childhood, musing on the essence of greatness and telling anecdotes. “You gotta be a little lucky,” he says and laughs cheekily, and one can’t help but be charmed by his laid-back nature and intelligence.
I am sure the process of securing those interviews is arduous. But we’re talking greatness here, right? Had Polsky managed to get, say, the Williams sisters, Michael Jordan, Anastasia Sokolova, and Usain Bolt, he probably wouldn’t have had the need to stretch that running time, focusing solely on what the living legends have to say. Perhaps, as a filmmaker, he’s rushing his own search for greatness a little bit.
Now playing in select theaters
