I Am: Celine Dion

This documentary comes across as unintentionally fascinating for a few different reasons. I assume the filmmaker is striving to present Celine in a positive light; specifically portraying her as a dedicated artist who is struggling to overcome a debilitating medical condition while her passion for her music remains a steady beacon of hope for herself as well as her fans. The film gives us an intimate glimpse into her current family life while also drawing from her early years as the youngest child in a family of 16. But despite all the makings of a traditional 'hero's journey' set-up, this film seems to accidentally portray a subtler, more sobering story. At 56 years of age, with a wealth of life experience behind her, Celine herself is rarely observed bequeathing any real sense of wisdom or personal grasp of life's meaning. She spends the majority of the film bemoaning her circumstances while openly longing for the days when she was an actively-working celebrity. It is interesting to see flashbacks of her making honest claims about her addiction to being on stage, at one even making a comment to the effect of "it's not about the song; it's about the performance." While we truly do empathize with Celine's medical condition, it is nevertheless difficult to watch two hours of a highly-talented performer caught in a psychologically frozen state when, arguably, we would love to see this accomplished woman demonstrate more maturity and spiritual resilience in the face of her life-altering trial. And while her music is truly an inspiration for many people across the globe, it nevertheless becomes a sad realization that her profound work ethic may have actually contributed to the demise of her health. One can't help but feel sorry for her (not to mention for her children who, ironically, seem quite distanced from her in the film) as she speaks endlessly of her intention to fight through her illness in order to "crawl" if needs be, back to the very stage.