Dick Johnson Is Dead

Netflix | Release Date (Streaming): October 2, 2020

7.6	USER SCORE Generally favorable reviews based on 44 Ratings

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sirrongNov 22, 2020

Not the easiest movie to watch. My family couldn't get on board with the premise. I'd recommend it only for the moral and emotional challenges, but it is also a great film.

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Raider_NationOct 6, 2020

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Even by Netflix standards, this was a sub-par movie, so disappointing. The pace was so slow and meandering. There was no story, nothing compelling, nothing touching. The several staged portions just hung there in space, going nowhere -- they were just plain amateurish, not creative. The director seemed to be really full of herself. The movie's subject, Dick Johnson, seemed to be a nice enough man. But his so-called "decline" was hardly anything, there was no progression of the disease like the trailers and reviews implied there would be. Just a nice, addled, forgetful man, who ended up dying of a heart attack. If I had to pick out one worst aspect, it was that any event which might have been interesting took place off camera and/or was glossed over. Was that guy "Kirk Johnson" who appeared briefly on the television her brother? If so, why was there nothing about him in the film? Was she once married to either of the apparently-gay fathers of her two children, or was she being a friend to them by having their children? Either one would be fine and honorable, but by avoiding the subject, she just seemed to be hiding things in a really frustrating way. I have no idea how the critics gave this an 87. I would give it a 30. I suspect that, being a cinematographer by trade, the director knows some critics and got some critical support that way. Maybe they felt bad for her, who knows.… Expand

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GBBQOct 8, 2020

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Seeing this as a 'Must See' on Metacritic meant I was going to watch this as soon as possible. I did so last night and, well, maybe the hype train killed it for me but I just wasn't moved by it. Its a nice tribute and I'm sure it was cathartic for the director but the whole thing felt false, we're led to believe on a couple of occasions that Dick Johnson has indeed died when the truth is he's still alive as I write this. That's great and maybe we should all get a chance to be mourned while we are still alive to really understand how our friends and family feel. But the fact is it never felt like this was a guy who was dying, he hadn't declined mentally or physically, he looked far from frail, didn't seem to have any regrets and had made peace. That might make for reassuring viewing but also made it hard to really connect emotionally.

I'm sure its a counter statement to our morbid fascination with death through podcasts and documentaries but by being too light in tone it just failed to hook me.… Expand

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bertobellamyDec 30, 2020

Funny and very sad at the same time, 'Dick Johnson Is Dead' proves to be a cathartic exercise for director Kirsten Johnson, who shares her fears to everyone that will experience the gradual loss of someone close. This is a unique documentaryFunny and very sad at the same time, 'Dick Johnson Is Dead' proves to be a cathartic exercise for director Kirsten Johnson, who shares her fears to everyone that will experience the gradual loss of someone close. This is a unique documentary that deserves at least an Academy Award nomination.… Expand