Some figures stick with us decades after they’ve passed. For anyone who has seen a John Candy film, it is no surprise he’s one of those singular talents. John Candy: I Like Me does not need to do much to convince us of his talent. Instead, it pays a loving tribute to the human being away from the screen and the fears he held in his life. Director Colin Hanks gets a star-studded group to celebrate the beloved actor but finds a way to highlight the heart he brought to everyone’s lives.
John Candy: I Like Me Plot
Hanks tells the story of Candy’s life by starting with the sad truth. We lost a legend in 1994. His loss was immeasurable for the acting community and the family he left behind. We then return to his youth, exploring his own difficulties when his father passed away. Candy became the life of the party and a friend to all as he attempted to live his life to the fullest.
Along the way, he inspired generations of comedians and became a superstar. Hanks tells the story through an impeccable archive of photos and videos. Yet it’s through the talking head interviews with his friends and family that we can feel his impact most.
The truth of John Candy is that he lived up to the legend.
Candy’s career has often been described by “what could have been.” The actor passed away at the age of 43, yet he helped craft and create more than a dozen hits in his short time in the spotlight. The clips that Hanks presents are shining examples of the craft. Hanks taps into the love the audience feels for Candy and does so by having actors speak about the moments where he chose to present empathy as a performer.
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In Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, we see a man devastated by loss and confident in himself. In Home Alone, he provides solace to a mother as she finds herself at her wits’ end. Mel Brooks literally cast him as man’s best friend in Spaceballs. These moments made audiences comfortable, and nearly every role showcased his ability as an active listener on screen. This created a relationship with audiences that might be considered a parasocial bond today, but ultimately was effective in making us love him.
Yet that persona was not limited to the big screen or performance. Over and over again, actors and talent agree that the Candy we got on screen was the Candy as he lived through the world. On a trip to National Lampoon headquarters, he gave a young Conan O’Brien the push to pursue his career. Candy turned down roles in big movies to spend time with his family and took roles to help out his friends, even if it meant having limited time on set. He was a gregarious person, and the dozens of figures who interacted with him were forever changed by their experiences with him.
Hanks opts for the typical biodoc route, but it is effective.
While John Candy: I Like Me is effectively edited and told, it does fall into a formula we’ve seen from dozens of documentaries. The celebrity bio-doc has an issue with similarity, where the talented figure at the center of the film works towards success and then reaches their big breakthrough before stumbling into tragedy. Hanks kicks off his feature with a short bit of Bill Murray silliness before launching into a stunning eulogy from Dan Aykroyd. Over the first fifteen minutes of John Candy: I Like Me, you are nearly guaranteed to be in tears.
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However, this emotional manipulation does not make it a unique piece of cinema. Many of the beats in John Candy: I Like Me could be pulled from the Wikipedia page. Even the focus on his collaborations with John Hughes and the general arc of his career can be broken down in more unique ways. Instead, Hanks plays up the nostalgia we’re going to feel for the legendary comic, and while it’s successful, it does make this documentary feel too traditional for its own good.
Perhaps the biggest thing that Colin Hanks, a well-regarded actor and director in his own right, brings to John Candy: I Like Me is the buy-in from his interviews. It’s one thing to get Bill Murray, Eugene Levy, and Catherine O’Hara to sit for an interview. It’s another thing to get them to open up about their close friend. Hanks does well here, and while he slightly overrelies on the talking head moments, many of the moments are too good to ignore.
Is John Candy: I Like Me worth watching?
Yes, the John Candy documentary is a heartfelt exploration of the iconic comedian and family man. That alone makes the film a worthy experience for fans. However, it’s also very fun to hear the many stories about Candy’s life. He clearly meant the world to many, and the hole he’s left in the world is obvious.
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When actors and figures like Candy are gone, a part of our goodwill towards others seems to fade away. Yet the lessons they leave are undeniable. It’s important to reach out to our friends and family about what scares us. We can be honest about actions that we find worrying, and need to have the bravery to tell each other the truth. Candy did this when others were scared to, and his openness with his family and friends has given them a shining light of humanity to cling to for the rest of their lives.
John Candy: I Like Me is set to release on Prime Video on October 10, 2025.
