Documentary
A yellowing magazine clipping glimpsed during this one-sided but entertaining documentary about Hollywood producer Robert Evans, now 72, bears the headline, "Is Robert Evans Really Jay Gatsby?" Apt question. Like F. Scott Fitzgerald's mysterious tycoon, Evans is self-created, believes image is all, resides in an opulent mansion and still pines for his one true love (Ali McGraw, who ditched their marriage bed for Steve McQueen).
Evans, in tough-guy voiceover and accompanied by film clips and photos of him with pals such as Jack Nicholson and Henry Kissinger, presents his résumé: clothing manufacturer, movie star, studio boss and has-been. Along the way, he shepherded such classics as The Godfather, parts I and II, and Chinatown, but there were also a drug arrest and a brush with a seamy murder case. Though Kid gives us only Evans's version of the story, he's quite a storyteller. (R)
Bottom Line: Kid's all right
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