I have been a fan of Chris Farley since I was a kid. The first movie of his I remember owning was a VHS type of Beverly Hills Ninja, which I had watched many times.
I was still pretty young when he died and while I was upset, I didn't know that he had died of an overdose. I didn't know anything about his addictions at that time. All I knew that I loved his movies.
The documentary I Am Chris Farley premiered August 10th on Spike TV and I watched that. I really enjoyed it. It was a good documentary and a nice way to celebrate Chris Farley's life. But I realized there was a lot left out of it. Most of his movies, including up-and-coming movies, were either glossed over or not mentioned. I found out there was a biography about him co-written by one of Chris's brothers and knew I had to give it a read.
I have read a number of biographies, but this format is different than any biography I have ever read before. Instead of just researching his life and writing a book from there, there are tons of interviews from his family, friends and people he worked with while he was alive.
Although it was different, I really liked it and I felt that this book give quite a good insight into his life and just about who Chris Farley was. He was a kind and caring person. He wanted to make people laugh and he always wanted to please his dad. But, there was pain deep inside, he was struggling with something. And I am just sorry he was never able to beat his addiction.
And it is sad that he thought so bad of himself. He didn't want to always be the fat guy that falls down, and I understand that. Chris Farley was never that to me. He made me laugh. A lot. Not because he was overweight, but he was just funny. And his movies were funny. But, I could see from his movies, despite being comedies, he could do more than just be funny. He wanted to do some dramatic roles and I definitely think if he lived, he would have done well in dramatic roles.
I also think he would have made an amazing Shrek. Don't get me wrong, I love Mike Myers as Shrek. But, from the clip I heard of Chris Farley as Shrek, that role was made for him.
Chris was so loved by so many people and that is made really clear in this book. No one sugar-coated anything. They didn't try to hide his addictions in this book, but it was made clear that despite his problems, Chris was loved and he was actually a really wonderful person. There were so many stories about all the things he'd done for people. I loved reading about that.
And I know Chevy Chase was just trying to get through to Chris Farley, trying to get him to really take a look at where his life was going and what would happen to him. But, Chris Farley wasn't just a blip. He wasn't just an overweight guy that only had a few funny things in his career. I know he didn't have a long career, but he made a lot of people happy. And it seems to me, he had a lasting impact on many people that really knew him.
This was a sweet, but heart-breaking book at the same time. Chris Farley was a funny, kind and caring guy. I wish he would have been able to beat his addictions so he could still be with us.
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