A life dedicated to the performing arts. What a man, we lost a great performer. Rest in peace Mr. Kilmer.

In honor of the passing of the iconic actor Val Kilmer, I recommend checking out his documentary, “Val,” on @primevideo. The film follows Val Kilmer’s life and career, using video footage that Kilmer shot himself, as well as home videos from his childhood. The film goes into detail about Val’s struggles with throat cancer and how it affected his film career, we also get a look into his personal life. “Val” is a fascinating and intimate documentary into the life and career of a phenomenal actor. We learn about an artist who is truly dedicated to his craft. This is a film filled with humor and emotion, and I highly recommend watching it!

WOW! raw, vulnerable, exposed, magical, beautiful

Val Kilmer was one of the great rising stars of the 1980s and 1990s His biggest debut to stardom was Top Gun next to making his debut as Batman in Batman Forever despite the uncomfortability of the time he spent in the suit while also feeling isolated Although he took as many roles as he could do expand his range Later he had two children and did his own solo production of Mark Twain on stage but in 2014 he was unfortunately diagnosed with throat cancer with extensive radiation leaving his voice impaired Yet he continued to act and pursue his creativity in art while also raising his two children Mercedes and Jack Val even managed to return as the iconic character Iceman in 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick by calling his buddy Tom Cruise With this documentary by directors Leo Scott and Ting Poo it covers everything in his early life up to present day including thousands of footage of him using his video camera to capture not only memories but also home movies and behind the scenes tidbits Val’s son narrates a majority of what went on during his early years before the cancer from being the youngest man to be accepted at Juilliard to making home movies to becoming vacant and detached after his brother drowned Val didn’t believe in death only that we are all a part of one unit of life so he never had any inate fear of it He had his own perspective of being famous feeling at times he was selling his old image and career just to please people yet at the same time he felt a sense of happiness to make his fans happy, we see the human beyond the actor not being so self-indulgent Most even claimed he was a perfectionist in the industry and he created a difficult working environment but Val just wanted to be the best version of himself The last half hour of this is a bit overextended although it is a good documentary following a man who brought his own joy to the world despite his voice being restrained medically through art As of right now the actor sadly has passed away but he left an impression on so many of his fellow co-stars as well as his relatives Val Kilmer was able to tell his life story in his own way as well as being introspective

Val - 9/10. Val Kilmer is the focus of this documentary that compiles home footage that he and his son have captured over the years. Compiling his life story and throwing some gut wrenching moments in the process, the documentary follows Kilmer as he struggles to cope with his throat cancer and also trying to reconcile with how his career has gone for the most part. A touching and tough documentary to watch, it offers fans of the actor and fans of filmmaking a different and interesting take on how movies and Hollywood work. Whats very insightful about the documentary is that we see so much revealed by the actor. His inspiration for making the film is to make a movie about acting, yet, makes a movie about a person who wants to do things his way. He lives and does things in a way that most people won't understand. Many have short sighted and called him mercurial or hard to work with, when really he's just a person whose ambition is to give his best. Its an eye opening doc for anyone unaware of what he has gone through the last few years. An amazing and great documentary and insight into a talented actor!

I grew up watching Val Kilmer films. I loved seeing his charismatic form of acting and range. This is an interesting documentary to watch, seeing him growing up as a child and various roles he's had over the years, through the lens of his own camera. His determination, grit and drive are all inspiring. A must see.

I'm not a big fan of Val Kilmer, but his story is interesting and his video archive has some things that I'd like to see more in depth. The doc needed just a little more meat and I would imagine that meat could be found in his archives, but probably the juiciest bits had to be left out for personal and legal reasons. Some of the negative reviews on this are downright cruel. Words like "egomaniac" are being thrown around in regards to a movie where someone shows themselves at their most vulnerable. What is wrong with you people?

Beautiful, touching, a stroke of genius! I have always loved the rolls played by Val as he is a great talent! Thank you Val for letting us into your life for a brief period!

Great perspective into the humanistic side of someone who could inadvertently and mistakenly come off as egotistic or pretentious.

Very heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same toile. Loved it.

I found this very moving. Such an honest look at his own life. I admire him for sharing this with us all.

I have to admit, I was not expecting Val Kilmer to be quite as into turqouise jewelry as he turned out to be. There's a few manufactured moments, sure, but Val benefits tremendously from a shocking amount of archival and behind-the-scenes footage that has been maintained and collected over an entire lifetime. Taken together, it gives us answers to some questions but poses even more about the actor's personality; we see plenty of details of home life, success, and tragedy, but also peek at a rather bizarre personality that isn't really evident in his on-screen persona. There's a sense of spontaneity and playfulness that is paired alongside some deep-seated trauma, and the result of that particular cocktail of personal development is an individual that is equal parts creative, spiritual, and humorous (the latter coming across as a bit of a coping mechanism). The film coasts on a bit of a nostalgia, offering a revolving door of previously unseen behind-the-scenes footage of some major blockbusters of the '80s and '90s, but also has a surprisingly introspective side, including Kilmer wrestling with his current medical status that largely prevents him from going after new roles, and in particular the ramifications of "cashing in on who he used to be" with convention and festival appearances. More of a well-detailed biography than a probing dissection of character, but still an interesting documentary that makes Kilmer seem like much more than a once-famous A-lister. Probably the greatest sin that the film commits is how little time it dedicates to Heat. (3/5)

Enjoyed every minute. Had me laughing and crying.

A retrospective revelation of one actor's insightfully reflective journey, leaving with increased appreciation towards his filmography's true value that enables connectively in getting to know the performer more thanks to his intimately open, profiling documentary. (A-)

Beautiful. It’s a man bearing his soul on film. We relive the moments of his life both good and bad. We not only learn more about Val’s life but realize something about ourselves. We are all facing the same struggles in life as a species. What a sad and beautiful documentary. MUST WATCH !

An amazing tribute and insight into a great actor's life and how he was affected by family, friends, fellow actors and illness. It is a really moving piece that showed what it takes to be a good actor and a good person. The home movies reminded me of my childhood. Kilmer had such an interesting life, filled with hardships and success, it made me appreciate his work and other actors like him. It plan on looking up his "Citizen Twain" performance. It was on Amazon.

Raw, emotional and truth. Life can have a unfair sense of humor. No one is immune.

Raw, sometimes chaotic home movie footage, some insight on his personality, but nothing too deeply personal. No interviews from those close to him as he lets you know what he wants you to know himself. If you are a Val Kilmer fan, which I am, you will appreciate this movie which I found very interesting, sad moments, a little heartbreaking, kind of sweet. He is a great artist, an eccentric, somewhat immature and/or obstinate, An incorrigible clown at times - often described as "difficult to work with" - maybe so. Nevertheless a great artist. Clearly he was destined to be an actor from a young age and was blessed with beauty and many wonderful talents. He has survived incredible loss, some negative situations brought on himself as he described as "behaved badly" at times. He is through it all an interesting man, a good man who I would love to know better. I wish he had made more movies when he was healthy. Cancer has robbed us of this great talent.

Enjoyed his autobiography.

This movie touched my heart deeply, I always saw Val's spirit behind his eyes and his smile, apart from his amazing performance of the characters, this movie confirmed to me what I thought about Val, he is an extraordinary human being and my love for him is not based on thought but on facts, love you val