Jono McLeod\u2019s documentary My Old School<\/em> recounts Bearsden staff and students\u2019 memories of Lee, and gets Lee\u2019s perspective on the story from the man himself. In a mysterious move that\u2019s in keeping with the subject\u2019s odd duck persona, Lee never appears on camera by his own request. Instead, audio of McLeod\u2019s interview with him is lip-synched by Alan Cumming, who at one point was attached to star in a dramatic version of Lee\u2019s life story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Brandon Lee scandal is easily Googled, and not difficult to guess, but I\u2019ll avoid spoilers. Lee\u2019s real identity isn\u2019t the only surprise My Old School<\/em> has up its sleeve, though it\u2019s arguable the film might be more compelling if it took a more forthright approach to the subject and the storytellers, rather than keep its cards close to the chest. As such, McLeod\u2019s documentary is an enjoyable if oddly jocular take on a strange incident in the lives of his interviewees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n McLeod brings the documentary\u2019s setting and surrounding characters to vibrant life, switching between interviews with now-grown students of Bearsden Academy and dramatized flashbacks done in Daria-<\/em>style animation. The Bearsden alumni still have fond memories of their time at the school, and tell stories about their interactions with Lee, most of which are funny, and some of which are surprisingly profound. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Most of the former students\u2019 feelings about the situation are lightly humorous, though occasionally they hint at something darker\u2014a reminder that this story, odd and quirky as it may be, has a creepy side. One student\u2019s memory of acting in South Pacific<\/em> with Lee involved a stage kiss between their characters; her memory is that it was brief and awkward. A video of the production says differently, and it\u2019s an uncomfortable discrepancy. Rather than interrogate that feeling, McLeod just lets it hang there, like a quick eyebrow-raising \u201cyikes!\u201d before moving on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The lip-synched portions of My Old School<\/em>, with Cumming mouthing Lee\u2019s words, are intriguingly jarring, adding aesthetic questions about the nature of performance and personality onto a story that carries those themes in a different sense. Again, however, McLeod seems drawn to the less interesting aspects of that performance. Rather than asking probing questions of Lee, he gives us Cumming\u2019s face from multiple angles so we can see how seamless his facial movements are with the audio. McLeod is more interested in the cleverness of the process than what the imposed restriction says about the person who\u2019s being interviewed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ultimately, My Old School<\/em> is less about the Brandon Lee scandal than the people who experienced it. McLeod has clear affection for the former Bearsden classmates, but while the nostalgia trip and schoolmate camaraderie are endearing, they take away from a far more interesting character study. The resulting film is certainly likable, though like a class clown in an AP English class, it doesn\u2019t feel like it\u2019s living up to its full potential. “My Old School” is out Friday in limited release.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/crookedmarquee.com\/stage8\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/my-old-school2-1024x576.jpg\")
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