Marty, Life Is Short

Grade: B

Martin Short was 12 when his oldest brother died. He was 18 and 20 when he lost his parents. His wife died in 2010. He has had a significant amount of tragedy and death in his life, and it doesn’t stop there. His daughter’s passing isn’t mentioned in this documentary, as it was made before. The late Catherine O’Hara is all over Marty, Life Is Short – in old interviews, home videos, and an abundance of modern interview footage. This must have been one of the last things she did. It’s extremely bittersweet to see so much of her here, not to mention his friends Gilda Radner, John Candy, and Harold Ramis.

He keeps good records. There is a plethora of incredible home video footage, particularly the extensively documented Christmas parties he was/is famous for hosting. Attendees include Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, Steven Spielberg and Kate Capshaw, Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, Steve Martin, Dan Aykroyd, Glenn Frey, Catherine O’Hara, Eugene Levy, and many more. Pretty decent guest list there. There’s a bit where Short and Tom Hanks re-enact the cliff-jumping scene from Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid – with Hanks as Forrest Gump and Short as Ed Grimley (the over-enthusiastic guy with hair slicked up to a point). I’m so glad they captured that, and that we get to see it here.

The home movies also give us a glimpse into how in love he was with his wife Nancy Dolman, and their children. This isn’t included here, but I remember when he was on Kathie Lee Gifford’s show when Nancy had been deceased for a couple of years, but Gifford was asking him questions about her in the present tense. Ever the class act, he didn’t call it out on the air, but just went with it. I wouldn’t blame anyone if they’d handled it less kindly. Marty, Life Is Short is a band that plays all the greatest hits you were hoping to hear. All the major stuff gets name-checked, from SCTV and SNL (he had amazing energy on these shows) to Only Murders in the Building and his live shows with Steve Martin.

It can be simultaneously weird and uplifting to see a documentary about someone who is still alive. It happened earlier this year with Lorne. It’s extra strange when a book/biopic/doc comes out before significant events happened in their careers. Will Smith’s biography was released before the 2022 Oscars, for example. Given the reflective tone of this movie, sometimes I forgot for a split second that Martin Short is still with us and as active as he’s ever been. It’s a gift. He’s a gift. Marty, Life Is Short will make you want to keep pressing on and continue doing whatever you’re the best at doing. And it will make you wish you’d taken more pictures and videos along the way.

Grade: B