Sundance review: In 'Dick Johnson Is Dead,' a daughter explores what it means, for herself and her dad, to be alive

‘Dick Johnson Is Dead’

★★★1/2

Playing in the U.S. Documentary competition of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival. Running time: 89 minutes.

Screens again: Friday, Jan. 31, 11:30 a.m., Egyptian (Park City); Saturday, Feb. 1, 12:15 p.m., The Grand (Salt Lake City).

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Director Kirsten Johnson’s intimate, funny and vital documentary “Dick Johnson Is Dead” is a living testament to a daughter’s love for her dad and the best “hug your family” message one can imagine.

Dick is Kirsten’s dad, and he’s not dead yet. But he’s in his mid-80s, and showing the signs of Alzheimer’s, and Kirsten knows it’s only a matter of time that Dad will be gone, mentally and then physically.

What does a filmmaker do with this heavy information? Fake his death. Over and over again. With her dad’s willing participation, a few make-up artists and some stunt doubles to make it look realistic.

The filmmaker also stages a funeral for her dad’s friends to pay their respects while he’s around to hear them. And she creates, on a soundstage, a version of heaven for him to enjoy — complete with dancers, confetti, and his favorite easy chair and ottoman.

In between the fabricated moments are real, raw and honest conversations about what it means for the Johnson family to watch their patriarch slowly fade away, to be gone before he’s gone. That happened with Kirsten’s mom, Katie Jo, and Dad knows that the same is likely for him.

Still, if one has to go — and dying is the one thing we’re all going to do someday — going in a fun way like this, surrounded by happy grandkids and lots of chocolate cake, is the nicest way to go. It’s the supreme irony of “Dick Johnson Is Dead” is that it shows how, in spirit, he’s never been more alive.