Directed By: Lisa D’Apoito

Release Year: 2025

This Film Has No Known Audio Description

What Is it?: A look back on the life of Shari Lewis, who passed in 1998, yet left an enduring legacy in the form of her contribution to children’s television, and a spunky little puppet named Lamb Chop. The documentary explores how Shari got her start, in a male dominated industry, and later became the first host of a show for kids. She revolutionized a lot of concepts still used today, and did all of that while navigating two marriages, and being a mother. Finally, just as her career was seeing a comeback in the 90’s, she received a diagnoses that left her saying Hello, Goodbye.

Why It Works: Shari and Lamb Chop’s legacy is everlasting. People alive today are still fond of her, and her various puppets, and that nostalgia is played well. this is a friendly documentary tht never strays into any dark subject matter, if there even is any. It avoids conflict, only lightly suggesting there was a problem in her marriage. A host of people I don’t know, because there wasn’t audio description, offer their takes on Lewis and her life left behind. Ultimately, this one is made for the fans of her show. If you grew up with Lamb chop, you’ll enjoy this more. It’s not quite the same as Won’t You Be my Neighbor, but it’s close.

I certainly learned a lot about Lewis and all the things she had to do to get where she is, and the hard work she put into her craft. She also just seemed like a truly delightful human being.

What Doesn’t Work: with a lot of documentaries, I don’t see much room for audio description, but here I did. I think we could have fit in a bit more than just a few names, and since the other half is a puppet, it would have been nice to describe Lamb Chop, since it has been a while, and not every blind person inherently knows what Lamb chop looks like.

As a film though, it just wants to be happy and carefree. It largely dodges anything remotely controversial, other than a reference to her marriage. We don’t know what Shari’s thoughts were on any number of topics, nor do we see her lobbying for children’s programming like Fred Roger’s. She is seen making a joke about the need for a female president, back when we only had 35 male presidents, but she also predated the civil rights act. Did she use her clout in any way to help, or did she feel like she couldn’t?

Often when family is involved, we get what they want us to get, so there’s no honest exploration of who Shari was, even if there was a wart. Even if maybe she could have done something differently, or had an opinion on something they just choose to not put in the documentary. Lewis also made it through the AIDS crisis. Did that impact her… at all? She just seems to fly through life as a magical ball of inspiration, and for many she was. But some may want a bit mor than a cheerful nostalgia bait documentary.

Why You Might Like it: I saw this with my Mom, and she loved it. nostalgia works. Even I knew who Shari and lamb Chop were, so I was excited and rewarded by this. We may not get a more honest documentary, and all we get is this. that’s fine.

Why You Might Not Like it: because Shari and Lamb chop will end up sharing the documentary space with emotionally devastating films about some aspect of the world being on fire. this is a retrospective. It isn’t reminding you that people are still dying in Ukraine and Gaza.

Final thoughts: Shari and Lamb Chop is a delightful mirror of the personality the children’s television host wanted to show the world, and presents her as the missing piece in your nostalgia puzzle. it isn’t daring, but it is as whimsical as a puppeteer could be.

Fresh: 7.7/10