DAN WEBSTER:
It was the ancient Greeks who may have said it best. Well, the Greek poet Hesiod, at least, who—according to Oxford Reference—preached that “moderation is best in all things.”
You can argue, of course, what Hesiod meant by “all things.” Even a moderate delving into something evil likely would be shunned by any civilized society. But these days even something such as vaccines, which in the 20th century were considered medical wonders, are under attack—so much so that even a “moderate” use of them is, in the eyes of a few vocal critics, seen as more dangerous than the condition they are designed to fight.
Such arguments are endless, and yet they are central to the Netflix documentary feature Don’t Die: The Man Who Wants to Live Forever. Directed by Chris Smith, the film explores the life of the millionaire Bryan Johnson and his quest to… well, the film’s title seems to say it all.
But does it? Not exactly, at least for those who buy into what Johnson is selling, in some cases literally. No, one aspect of Smith’s film is a frank look at Johnson’s methods and motivations, in short his attempts to change his life and, as a consequence, improve the same for society at large.
Johnson has been the subject of numerous news reports, many of which director Smith portrays. And the majority of those reports, from a variety of media, are understandably negative.
As a New York Post article declared, “The 47-year-old tech mogul-turned-biohacker is on a quest to cheat death,” which involves a daily powering "through a meticulous regimen of 91 supplements, multiple meals, and an anti-aging regimen that might sound more like a sci-fi plot than reality.”
In his film, Smith follows Johnson as he goes through his various routines, which also involve going to bed—without fail—at 8:30 PM, rising eight hours later, working out for an hour before downing the supplements and engaging in other facets of his anti-aging efforts, including basking in a special sun lamp and wearing a device on his head to promote hair growth.
All of this could be dismissed as the quirks of a rich guy who has the time and financial means to indulge any and every whim that he could think of. And no doubt Johnson has the necessary finances, his entrepreneurial and venture-capitalist skills having made him a fortune through founding and leading techno companies and purchasing and then selling others, like Venmo, that specialize in web-payment systems.
As Smith points out, Johnson cites science to back his claims that what he’s doing not only has enhanced his health but is actually turning back his personal aging clock. And when we see his taut-body physicality now as compared to the doughy dad-bod guy he was decades before when he was married, the father of three and working long hours to make his fortune, it’s hard to deny that he’s doing something right.
Smith, though, doesn’t give us a mere fan-boy look at Johnson. He interviews a number of credible scientists who question Johnson’s actions, if not the totality of what he’s doing then at least how far he’s taking things. Some of the man’s points about America’s obsession with junk food do strike home.
And those questions involve not just the controversial Follistatin gene therapy he’s undergone that claims to, among other benefits, reverse aging—but also the plasma transfusions he has shared with both his son and his own father. They include even the products he sells though his Project Blueprint wellness program—from nutty butter to olive oil—that claim to increase longevity.
The real problem, then, goes beyond Johnson’s being a symbol of privileged self-pampering. It’s more the cult-like status he has attained, which Smith documents by filming a Johnson-led hike that attracts some 400 fans.
When people do something radical and controversial to their own bodies, it’s easy enough to ignore. But when they entice others into their web, as we’ve seen occur time and again in history, the situation can become dangerous. And this is especially so when their personal allure steamrolls any sense of what could, even conservatively, be called "moderation."
For Spokane Public Radio, I’m Dan Webster.
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Movies 101 host Dan Webster is the senior film critic for Spokane Public Radio and a blogger for Spokesman.com.