Synopsis
Over seven decades, actor and activist George Takei journeyed from a World War II internment camp to the helm of the Starship Enterprise, and then to the daily news feeds of five million Facebook fans. Join George and his husband, Brad, on a wacky and profound trek for life, liberty, and love.
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Cast
- George TakeiSelf
- Brad TakeiSelf
- Walter KoenigSelf
- William ShatnerSelf
- Leonard NimoySelf
- Nichelle NicholsSelf
- Lea SalongaSelf
- Howard SternSelf
- Tom AmmianoSelf
- John ChoSelf
Recommendations
- 80
Variety
A unique blend of camp and conviction, To Be Takei deftly showcases George Takei’s eclectic personality and wildly disparate achievements. - 75
The Playlist
In the new documentary To Be Takei, it becomes clear that Takei is a man who defies expectations and subverts stereotypes at virtually every turn. It’s just a shame the movie wasn’t as progressive as its subject. - 70
Village Voice
To Be Takei is never less than joyful — much like the man himself. - 70
Arizona Republic
The film is choppy in parts, but it is George Takei's approachability, his constant big laughter, even his singing (he performs "Don't Fence Me In" after explaining how the internment camps made the lyrics poignant to him) that tie it together. - 67
IndieWire
Takei is a natural storyteller who lends an enjoyable flow to the movie’s uncomplicated proceedings. - 63
Slant Magazine
Jennifer M. Kroot plays things a bit too straight and safe by giving into basic emotional and thematic possibilities of each period in Takei's prolific early life and subsequent Hollywood career. - 60
The Hollywood Reporter
To Be Takei follows multiple threads without pulling any one of them satisfyingly into focus, making it amusing and even poignant, though not quite the window into its subject's life that it might have been with a more penetrating observer. - 60
The Dissolve
He seems like one of the least neurotic men on the planet, and yet how could that describe someone who lived with a heavy secret for 68 years? That’s the question Kroot’s film circles without ever managing completely to ask, much less fully answer.
