Lucille Ball lived a lot of life. From toughing it out in the old Hollywood studio system to inventing television comedy as we still know it today to being the most powerful studio executive in television to shepherding in generation after generation of funny women, it would take multiple feature films to dramatize Ball’s life and do it justice. And beyond just getting an audience to believe that anyone could ever believably play Ball on screen, condensing the icon’s life story into a manageable runtime was a major hurdle that writer/director Aaron Sorkin had to clear with the Academy Award-nominated Being the Ricardos.
I think it’s safe to say that when faced with the impossible task of playing a woman that the majority of moviegoers feel like they know incredibly well, Nicole Kidman did a great job as Sorkin’s Lucille. Sure, that’s more of an opinion than fact (as is all criticism), but Kidman does have an Academy Award nom on her side. But the other thing? The timeline thing? That was impossible.
Instead of focusing on Ball and Desi Arnaz’s entire lives, Being the Ricardos focuses on just one week in the production of I Love Lucy. And as Sorkin tells it, a whole lot happened that week: Ball was outed as having registered as a communist, Arnaz was outed as a philandering husband, and Ball and Arnaz broke the news that they were expecting a baby. While all of those events did happen, they definitely did not happen during one week. Of all the complaints about Being the Ricardos, this — the inaccuracy of the timeline — is the one that I saw most frequently in my feeds. Maybe that’s my fault for being friends with/following so many people who are passionate about TV history?
Lucy and Desi
This is why it’s great news that the documentary Lucy & Desi is also available to stream exclusively on Prime Video. The film, directed by Amy Poehler, acts as a perfect companion piece to Being the Ricardos — so much so that if you plan on watching or rewatching Sorkin’s film, you should really pre-game with Lucy & Desi. This deftly executed doc accomplishes the impossible task of not only telling the Ball and Arnaz saga in 90 minutes, but doing so in a way that will have you laughing, crying, and crying from laughing. It elaborates on everything that Being the Ricardos touches upon, like Ball’s red scare, the groundbreaking televised pregnancy, and all of the innovations that Arnaz came up with that shaped the medium. It puts all of those moments in their proper context, allowing the viewer to feel the passage of time and the couple’s meteoric rise to being TV’s first power couple.
But what’s really great is how Being the Ricardos actually acts as a complement to the documentary. Yeah, Lucy & Desi puts all of those events in order, but Being the Ricardos shows you how those events unfolded — or, rather, may have unfolded. Like, the doc tells you why Vivian Vance and William Frawley did not like each other, and then Being the Ricardos lets you see that friction play out. Ball’s drive and perfectionist streak is a through line in Lucy & Desi, and then Being the Ricardos shows Ball (well, Kidman as Ball) taking charge. There’s a great balance between these two films, between the factual reality of Lucy & Desi and the emotional reality of Being the Ricardos.
BEING THE RICARDOS, from left: Nicole Kidman as Lucille Ball, Javier Bardem as Desi Arnaz,, 2021. ph: Glen Wilson / © Amazon Studios / courtesy Everett Collection
Never is that more apparent in the summation of Ball and Arnaz’s work/life balance during the I Love Lucy years. Lucy & Desi lays out the primary reason why they insisted on doing the show together (they were desperate to start a family and hated that their careers kept them apart) and where that ultimately got them (they got a family, but the career meant to keep them together actually drove them apart). Sorkin, presumably without having seen the doc, makes that very same point in Being the Ricardos — and he’s allowed to use the symbolism and visual language that a narrative feature film allows. It’s really well done, and works even better after having just seen the factual arc of their lives play out.
Both of these films being available to stream on Prime Video feels more like kismet than coincidence. Lucy & Desi and Being the Ricardos feel like they were meant to be seen back-to-back, creating an immersive experience that really lets you into the world of Desilu. And with Lucy & Desi available to stream, Being the Ricardos no longer has any explaining to do.