“Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” is as engaging portrait of the actor, his career and struggles with Parkinson’s disease. (photo courtesy of Apple TV+)

Let’s be honest. Documentaries can be quite frustrating when they take liberties with the truth, condense reality into simple summations, replace pulse with talking heads. That’s not the case in “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie,” available on Apple TV+ now.

Instead, director Davis Guggenheim (“An Inconvenient Truth”) favors a more lively, artistic approach reimagining Michael J. Fox’s entire audiovisual archive as autobiographical. The effect is entertaining, informative and gut wrenching at times.

In an hour and a half, a remarkable portrait of a former teen heartthrob unfolds. We learn about his childhood, early career, blockbuster breakout and life after a Parkinson’s disease diagnosis. Some of this info might feel like old news, but in “Still” the story finds life in remarkable ways unlike most documentaries.

This is a true mixed-media project: reenactments, home videos, still photos, old interviews and new original material. But what “Still” does with Fox’s TV and film library is something incredibly special. This is a movie made from other movies. The opening scene sets the stage for what comes next.

As Fox narrates the first symptom of Parkinson’s disease in the early 1990s, we witness the man himself at the appropriate age for the story doing some of the things that modern voice over describes. Some reenactment occurs, specifically a POV shot of a hand whose pinky finger moves uncontrollably. But all that Michael footage hails from Fox’s films.

This isn’t B-roll as usual. After the narration addresses how Fox spent the previous night at a bar, then comes B-roll of Fox at a bar, the original film’s context stripped down to nothing, filled with new meaning here. And this continues throughout the entire story.

Normally a documentary doesn’t bother with subplots, but this one actually features a few. First, there’s Fox’s voiceover narration derived from several of his books. During these sequences, reenactments depict his childhood and early years without showing a single actor’s face.

Those reenactments don’t last long though. Soon enough, films, TV series, news spots and assorted other media tell his story instead. All with that remarkable, snarky narration contextualizing what we see.

Next, a contemporary interview exclusive to “Still.” Fox stares directly at the camera, the extent of the disease’s impact on display. This is a candid interview. He explains his current state, takes a pill break, cracks jokes. This interview alone is incredibly vulnerable, emotionally compelling. Interesting observation: Fox is the only person interviewed for “Still.” But that doesn’t mean he graces the screen alone.

Between interviews, Fox interacts with others while the camera crew remains in the background. A physical therapist works with Fox on leg movements. Wife Tracy Pollan – they met on the “Family Ties” set – helps him answer emails. And the entire family laughs together in the kitchen. But we only enjoy a glimpse into Fox’s mind, no one else’s.

“Still” is a love letter to Fox’s legacy. Think about how much work goes into matching film footage with someone’s narration. Fox says he woke up; someone then needs to locate something from a Fox film that fits. Rinse and repeat. That only works with the right subject, the right source whose life has endured microscopic coverage for a long time.

Beyond the impressive production team, Fox himself is incredible here. He allows Guggenheim to look beyond the curated public persona. More shockingly, Fox refused any veto power over the final product, so this is the director’s uncut vision, not a controlled aspect of a celebrity’s life. That’s some major trust.

It works. “Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie” is as engaging as it is well executed. Plenty more docs will arrive in 2023, but this one almost seems like a shoo-in for best pic in that category. It’ll be hard for anything else to be this original or authentic.