Three years after his death, Marlon Brando remains one of the most fascinating and enigmatic iconoclasts in the history of cinema. A proponent of Stella Adler’s "Stanislavsky System" (which later became "method" acting), Brando revolutionized the acting discipline to such a degree that many film scholars and fellow thespians alike tend to divide the history of film performance into two distinct eras: "Before Brando" and "After Brando". He was also a humanitarian pioneer, campaigning on behalf of American Indians and African-Americans, serving as a forerunner to the presently de rigeur actor-cum-activist. Aside from his acting prowess and altruistic endeavors, however, the one quality that elevated Marlon Brando to near-mythical status was his highly eccentric nature.

Filmmakers Leslie Greif and Mimi Freedman’s new documentary “Brando” aims to illustrate the actor’s raison d'être: exposing the man behind the persona. The film chronicles Brando’s saga - his turbulent adolescence, the halcyon Broadway years, cinema immortality, and his eremitic twilight years. The spawn of an alcoholic actress and a cold, detached traveling salesman, Brando is painted by Greif and Freedman as a maverick acting prodigy blessed with an innate ability to channel his innermost demons onto the silver screen.

The documentary intersperses illuminating testimonials from friends and costars, including Martin Scorsese, Al Pacino, Johnny Depp and others, with a painstakingly thorough filmography. Since Brando’s cinematic history is already widely known, the most fascinating elements of the film are the testimonials of his closest friends, revealing Brando’s wide array of idiosyncrasies, including but not limited to his passion for conga drumming, womanizing (retribution for the difficult relationship with his mother, perhaps?), his love of foreign and exotic women (credited to a black nanny who put him to sleep as a child), the most memorable Oscar acceptance speech of all time (Sally Field has nothing on Sascheen Littlefeather), and his extraordinary sense of humor. The most intriguing and enlightening parts consist of a cross-dressing home video of a young Marlon Brando and Montgomery Clift goofing off, and his early screen test for “Rebel Without A Cause”.

At 166 minutes, “Brando” is an excruciatingly long documentary best viewed in the privacy and comfort of one’s home. The film contains too many extraneous testimonials by loose acquaintances (John Turturro, Henry Silva, among others). Moreover, there are some glaring omissions in the testimonial department, namely fellow Mulholland Drive bad boy Jack Nicholson, Francis Ford Coppola, and renowned Brando disciple Robert DeNiro. The pic has continuity problems as well, thanks to choppy editing, resulting in some awkward transitions (e.g. the passage from comedic clips of “The Freshman” to his son’s murder trial). And on the subject of Christian Brando’s murder trial - and the resulting suicide of Marlon’s daughter - this tragic event is only mentioned in passing.

“Brando” is ultimately a very informative, albeit unfocused documentary, with far too much time dedicated to Brando the actor, and far too little time dedicated to Brando the man. The movie poster for “Brando” contains the actor’s timeless visage - a black-and-white portrait of his Stanley Kowalski. Perhaps that’s the way we should all choose to remember him.