A two-hour documentary which traces the life and career of Jerry West, this moving film explores the personal struggles behind the NBA icon’s career.
From his early childhood, his introduction to basketball, his professional losses to his retirement in 1974, director Kenya Barris ( “Black-ish”) has given audiences an immersive film with his engaging documentary debut on an NBA icon.
With dramatic music accompanied with footage that include family photographs and videos, it’s a solid piece of candid film making that captures the NBA Champion who is the silhouette on the NBA logo.
In “Jerry West: The Logo,” West reflects on not building a bond with his sons and opens up, with rare candor, about his private struggles with depression, and his complicated relationship with fatherhood.
“You spend more time during basketball season with your team mates than your family,” he soberly shares in one scene.
He also talks about losing to the Celtics in 1969. A loss he called “the worst day in my life” and describes feeling like a failure.
“I felt so horrible that we had let our fans down,” says the Hall of Famer, who as a player, was a 14-time All-Star, Olympic Gold Medalist.
Barris is truly emphatic as he gets West to open up about his childhood, growing up in segregated West Virginia with an abusive father and losing his older brother in the Korean war.
He aptly captures West’s illustrious playing career and the successes of a visionary executive who architected both the “Showtime” Lakers of the 80s and the Shaq/Kobe Lakers of the early 2000s, then went on to contribute to the success of the modern Golden State Warriors.
A mentor and guiding force for generations of young basketball stars, players featured in the film include former and current NBA stars Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Magic Johnson, Michael Jordan, and Shaquille O’Neal, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, and West’s own wife and several of his children.
Basketball was his outlet and joy and beyond the struggles, triumphs, and sacrifices, if there is a secret to his success as a player and coach, it’s that West was not afraid to make a mistake and always trusted his instincts.
With his authentic access in documenting what would become West’s final interviews (West died June 2024), Barris has captured an icon during his most vulnerable and reflective moments and offers audiences a side of the legend they’ve never seen.
“Jerry West: The Logo” will premiere exclusively on Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide April 16.
By Samantha Ofole-Prince
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