Hemingway

Hemingway is an enlightening three-part, six-hour documentary series from PBS that premiered in 2021. A masterful undertaking by award-winning filmmakers Ken Burns and Lynn Novick, the series deep-dives into the life and work of the iconic American author Ernest Hemingway. Renowned for his powerful prose and transformational impact on 20th-century literature, Hemingway remains a subject of intrigue, both for his monumental literary contributions and the often controversial facets of his personal life.

The series is structured chronologically, beginning with Hemingway's childhood and culminating in his tragic death. Using a mix of photographs, film archives, interviews, and voice narration, Hemingway offers audiences an intimate, balanced, and revealing look at this mercurial figure. The documentary features actor Jeff Daniels lending his voice to Hemingway's writings, while the series also draws upon a cast of diverse and notable actors such as Meryl Streep, Keri Russell, Mary-Louise Parker, and Patricia Clarkson to give voice to Hemingway's four wives.

Throughout the series, Hemingway's works are dissected, elucidated, and brought to life using animated sequences, offering viewers fascinating insights into his minimalist writing style—his distinctive literary voice that forever changed the landscape of literature. Each episode provides in-depth examinations of his groundbreaking novels like The Old Man and the Sea, A Farewell to Arms, For Whom the Bell Tolls, and the masterful short stories such as Hills Like White Elephants and The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber.

Yet, Hemingway does not shy away from the less savory aspects of the author's life. It delves into his troubled relationships, his issues with alcohol and depression, his multiple marriages, his risky pursuits as a war correspondent, a big-game hunter and a deep-sea fisherman, and his eventual tragic death. The series sparks reflection on how his life experiences, vulnerabilities, and human failings were intertwined with his writing.

Hemingway is as much an attempt to understand the man as it is to appreciate the author. It explores Hemingway’s persona—the macho, hard-drinking, and rakish image that he consciously cultivated, and contrasts it with his sensitive, introspective, and complicated nature that emerges from his writings. The series probes key questions: Who was Ernest Hemingway beyond his celebrated works and larger-than-life image? What were the underlying complexities, frailties, and contradictions that characterized him as a man and shaped his writings? The documentary aims to remove years of accumulated myths and stereotypes tied to Hemingway's name, offering a nuanced and thoughtful appraisal of the man behind the literary giant.

Burned into our collective cultural memory are images of Hemingway alongside lions he'd hunted in Africa, behind the lines during the Spanish Civil War, and engaging in deep-sea fishing in the Caribbean, yet these dominant narratives only employ a single lens to view Hemingway. This documentary unravels the multiple layers and dimensions, the triumphs and turmoils, the public image and private insecurities of Hemingway, dissecting how these influenced his storied career.

Hemingway employs the tried-and-true approach of Ken Burns' historical storytelling. Archival footage, photographic stills, and a range of engaging interviews with writers, scholars, and Hemingway's son, Patrick, connect the dots between Hemingway's life, his writings, and his tumultuous times. The documentary also reflects on Hemingway’s powerful and studied masculinity, his relationships with women, his views on race, and his perceived homophobia against the backdrop of the cultural and social norms of his era.

In essence, Hemingway examines the life of a massively influential writer within the context of the larger world that he inhabited, showing how they impacted one another. Crafting a comprehensive narrative that both honors and critiques Hemingway, the series concludes as a vital viewing experience for literary enthusiasts, history lovers, and those interested in American culture. Hemingway is a revealing examination of the writer’s creative process, a poignant exploration of his personal life and struggles, and an insightful discussion of his enduring literary influence.