Review: 'Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in 2 Pieces' expertly examines comedian

Steve Martin opens up as much as he's ever opened himself up in "Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in 2 Pieces," a revealing look at one of our most beloved entertainers.

Martin's not a shy guy, but he is private and extremely self-aware, so much so that the documentary isn't allowed to act as a straightforward documentary. Instead it unfolds as a deconstruction of the elements that go into a documentary — the candid moments at home, the chats with famous friends, the soundbite that functions as a revelation of one's inner self — with running commentary about the process from Martin himself.

That, as much as anything, is revealing about Martin and the way he operates: he's never quite happy with the thing, he'd rather break the thing down and discover what it is, and learn what makes it tick and why.

That's what he did in his riotous comedy act in the 1970s, which is the focus of the first half of the two-part documentary from director Morgan Neville (the Oscar-winning "20 Feet From Stardom," the Mister Rogers profile "Won't You Be My Neighbor?"). Titled "Then," it traces Martin's roots from Southern California kid working at Disneyland to the white suit-wearing "wild and crazy guy" with an arrow through his head whose act took the nation by storm.

Martin, in voiceover, talks about his early days, his happy childhood, and his eventual realization that his childhood was only happy when he was away from his emotionally distant father and outside his own home. That's where he learned to entertain audiences not so much by telling jokes, but by making people laugh by working around jokes, building up tension and never releasing it. Punchlines were easy, and he never took the easy route.

In a transitioning America he became a sensation, a sold-out arena act and the first comedian with a platinum-selling album. Then he gave up live performances altogether and shifted to movies, which is where the doc's second part, "Now," picks up.

"Now" lets us see the now 78-year-old Martin — in the first part, he's only heard, and seen in archival clips — as he works out his live act with Martin Short, chats with pal Jerry Seinfeld and performs mundane activities, such as working on the New York Times crossword puzzle or going for a bike ride. He's always aware of the cameras, which shows how fidgety his mind is: Again, rather than doing the thing, he comments on the act of doing the thing, which becomes its own kind of meta performance.

It's just who he is. He's an intellect and a family man, for whom longing has been a running theme in his work. Neville expertly deploys clips from Martin's films, from "Roxanne" to "LA Story" to "Bowfinger," which help illustrate the emotional resonance of Martin's work, and where Martin was at, emotionally, during those times in his life. The melancholy underbelly of his work shines through, as it has in his work as a playwright, novelist and even a banjo player. (OK, maybe not so much in the banjo.)

Martin comments about how he found true happiness late in life, after searching for it for much of his younger years, and how his life has sort of worked in reverse. The documentary's two chapters are as different as Martin's younger and older selves, but together they help shine a spotlight on a performer who has always had a wall up and is still learning how to let us see over the top of it.

agraham@detroitnews.com

'Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in 2 Pieces'

GRADE: B

Rated TV-MA: language

Running time: 98 minutes ("Then"), 95 minutes ("Now")

On Apple TV+