Documentary film “Starring Jerry as Himself” works as a sort of sincere public service while also being a little family project for its main human subject. For showing what happened to him a few years ago, the documentary takes a rather unconventional approach, and the result is often sweet and amusing despite the very serious sides of its real-life story.

The center of the documentary is Jerry Hsu, a retired Taiwanese American who could be regarded as an example of American dream. Around 40 years ago, he emigrated to US and then worked hard for not only himself but also his wife and three sons, and he was about to enjoy his comfortable retired life in 2021 despite being alone due to his recent divorce.

And then there came an unexpected call on one day. The caller was supposed to be some Chinese police officer, and he notified to Hsu that Hsu happened to get associated with some money laundering crime in China. While flatly warning that Hsu may get deported because of this serious crime, the officer also seemed rather generous and understanding, and then he requested Hsu to cooperate with him for more investigation.

At first, what that Chinese officer wanted was pretty harmless on the surface. He asked Hsu to work as a sort of undercover agent for him and his superior, and Hsu willingly went along with that because getting deported was the last thing he wanted right now. Besides supporting his ex-wife to some degree, he was about to help his eldest son buy a house, so he naturally did not say anything to his family, though they began to wonder why he was so often talking with someone on the phone.

Instead of having Hsu and several others around him talk about what happened at that time, the documentary, which is incidentally produced by his second son, has them do a series of reenactment scenes along with a few performers. As shown around the end of the documentary, those phone conversation scenes are really based on what was exchanged between Hsu and those two Chinese officers on the other end of the line (Hsu wrote the screenplay for himself, by the way), and the documentary becomes a bit amusing when Hsu and one of these two Chinese police officers are together on the screen as they talk more and more with each other.

We also get to know more about Hsu’s family. His wife is busy with starting her own life, and her shiny new residence certainly makes a big contrast with his small and plain apartment which is not so furnished much on the whole. In case of his three sons, each of them is usually busy with each own matter, and we cannot help but sense some distance between them and their father, even though they are sincerely concerned about their father’s welfare from time to time.

I have no idea on whether they really present themselves in front of the camera, but Hsu’s family members look mostly natural throughout the documentary, and they often bring some extra human element to the documentary. At one point, we observe Hsu’s youngest doing two part-time jobs for earning his meager living, and it looks like he is the one who really needs some financial help from his father. In case of Hsu’s ex-wife, she is quite a spirited woman with colorful personality, and she will give you some good laugh during a brief scene in the middle of the end credits.

Meanwhile, the documentary also shows what Hsu did as following more requests and instructions from those two Chinese police officers, and that is probably the point where you become all the more suspicious about what is really going on. As a matter of fact, some of you already saw through Hsu’s circumstance right from the very beginning, and the documentary can be quite a frustrating experience for you because of that.

Thankfully, director Law Chen, who also edited the documentary, keeps the whole process lean and succinct. Although the running time is less than 80 minutes, the documentary feels mostly compact and focused, and I was only a bit disappointed that it does not provide more time and space for Hsu and his family members to show themselves more. Sure, the last 10 minutes of the documentary becomes quite reflective and intimate as handling the bitter aftermath of Hsu’s incident, but it could delve more into their feelings and thoughts in my inconsequential opinion.

In conclusion, “Starring Jerry as Himself” is not entirely without weak aspects to notice, but it is one of those sincere and likable documentaries you will not be so willing to give any negative comment. I still want to know more about Hsu and his dear family, but I was entertained by its unconventional storytelling approach nonetheless, while occasionally touched by some personal moments observed from them. Yes, what eventually happened to Hsu and his family was quite irreversible to say the least, but it seems that the making of this documentary helped them having some meaningful time together, and it is moving to see them being reminded again that they are still a family despite the incident. To be frank with you, I sincerely hope that they will continue to move on as this documentary does some good things for many old, retired people like Hsu out there.