The film focuses on biographer Robert Caro and his editor, the documentarian's father Robert Gottlieb, as they work methodically to complete the final, fifth volume of Caro's Lyndon Johnson biography.[3] The pair, both in their late 80s, had worked together for five decades, starting with Caro's biography of Robert Moses, The Power Broker, and continuing through Caro's first four volumes about Lyndon B. Johnson. Its story is focused on the interplay between writer and editor as they work to finish the fifth book rather than a history of their lives. The film features interviews with politicians and media personalities.[4]
Production
Though Caro and Gottlieb originally declined to be the subject of the documentary, after some convincing, documentarian Lizzie Gottlieb began filming them in 2016. At first, she only filmed them separately, at Caro's request, to avoid moments of contention. Towards the end the two are seen editing together, with music instead of sound. The film was in post-production in early 2021[4] and premiered at the June 2022 Tribeca Film Festival.[5]Sony Pictures Classics acquired the film following the festival.[6][7]
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 96% of 47 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 8.1/10.[9]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 81 out of 100, based on 14 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[10]
