This is about the search of a son for his dead, elusive, philandering father. It is also one of the more interesting films about architecture. Fans of twentieth-century architecture will be intrigued to see and hear so many notable architects. Aside from archival footage of Kahn himself, there are interviews with Philip Johnson, I.M. Pei, Robert Stern, Frank Gehry, and Moshe Safdie. And of course, we learn all manner of personal things about Louis Kahn himself. In the end it is not the insight into star architects that leaves the deepest impression, but the level of thoughtful reflection.

A common criticism of contemporary architecture is "what's the fuss, it's an ugly and cold-looking building" or "there might be some aesthetic appeal, but it's a horrible building to live/work in." Kahn's film works through these questions. Early on in the film, he approaches the Richards Medical Towers in Philadelphia, he says he wants to like the building as a way of embracing his mysterious father. But that becomes difficult because he finds out that the inhabitants don't like the building at all - they're unhappy with the offices, they don't like the windows, and the temperature in the rooms changes all the time.

This dynamic can also work the other way. If you've seen pictures of the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, you'd probably expect similar reactions. But not so. Kahn says the researchers like the open-space laboratories which stretch along the whole building, and that the individual offices, all having a window facing the Pacific Ocean, are wonderful. Unfortunately, he doesn't show any images from inside the building.

The most moving part comes at the very end of the film. Kahn has a memorable conversation with architect Shamsul Wares in the National Assembly of Bangladesh. Wares is moved to tears as he speaks about the pain Kahn incurred on his families in the course of achieving something so grand and meaningful, investing his energy in the building that gave Bangladesh democracy.