Documentary details life of legendary neurologist and author Oliver Sacks
Programme explores intimate details of the eminent scientist’s battles with drug addiction, homophobia, and a medical establishment that accepted his work only decades later
The life of legendary neurologist and author Oliver Sacks is laid bare
in an intimate documentary released in the autumn.
Oliver Sacks: His Own Life explores intimate details of the eminent scientist’s battles with drug addiction, homophobia, and a medical establishment that accepted his work only decades later.
London-born Sacks was known for his best-selling books, Awakenings and The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat, which featured case studies of people, including himself, who were grappling with neurological disorders.
He once stated that the brain was the “most incredible thing in the universe” and helped redefine society’s understanding of the mind and the diversity of human experience.
Directed by celebrated documentary film-maker Ric Burns, the film features revealing and personal interviews with Sacks conducted in the months prior to his death in 2015 and those closest to him including Jonathan Miller, Temple Grandin, Paul Theroux and Bill Hayes, among others.
The film also draws on unique access to the extensive archives of the Oliver Sacks Foundation.
- Oliver Sacks: His Own Life is released in UK cinemas in September
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