Lady Boss Lived Large

 

It was the winter of 2013.  I was a busy mother of three, juggling scheduling conflicts and deadlines when I got the email that I'd be talking to superstar author Jackie Collins to help promote her new novel, 'The Power Trip'.  I was nearly sucked down by the undercurrent of ineptitude I felt. This was a woman whose novels I'd spent my middle school years trading in the bathroom with other like-minded heathens in plaid jumpers and knee socks. No set of questions I came up with seemed worthy. She was the glitzy, leopard print wordsmith of my formative years so I was determined to come to the interview with something that didn't make me seem like a swooning preteen. Back in the day, she was the antidote to the informational void we always encountered when asking about sex. That intimate knowledge wasn't going to teach itself and the nuns were doing everything in their power to make sure none of us had any idea what we were doing when we got out there. We needed her over-the-top sex-soaked novels for reference. She wrote about stylish, potent, powerful women in six-inch heels, with glorious flowing manes of hair, gripping five thousand dollar handbags, things twelve-year-olds with braces and acne couldn't even begin to grasp. 

Naturally, I got through the interview, and nearly a decade later things have taken somewhat of a dark turn. Only two years after I spoke to her, Jackie Collins passed away just a few weeks shy of her 78th birthday leaving millions of fans stunned and a gaping void in the publishing world. Now, however, we have been gifted with a documentary, 'Lady Boss: The Jackie Collins Story', that covers the most intimate aspects of her life with the same frothy over-the-top joie de vivre that she employed while building her one-woman literary empire.

The film (which had its premiere at the Tribeca film festival and has already been shown on CNN) is currently available on Netflix and is a must for anyone who wants a peek behind the carefully crafted facade that hid her personal struggles. Jackie Collins lived as large as some of the characters in her novels and suffered epic setbacks that were clearly not as well publicized, probably due to her closely guarding her real life and the people in it, while promoting her public persona.  The director, Laura Fairrie, lets a cast of Jackie's closest friends and family narrate this immersive journey through her life, touching on her importance to the early 80s feminist movement, her revolutionary novels, her successful and failed relationships, and her loving family. The dynamic between Jackie and her superstar sister Joan is especially intriguing to watch. It's a heady mix of fact, scandal, and image crafting spun by a self-made woman who never took no for an answer and kept pushing forward no matter how large the obstacles in her way seemed. 

'Lady Boss' is hilarious and incredibly moving in equal measure, and since we've all been cooped up looking for good streaming content for the better part of two years now, I highly recommend you add it to your Netflix queue as soon as possible.   We miss you, Jackie!

First Look: Soul Boys Of The Western World

Soul Boys Of The Western World is a doc on Spandau Ballet and it looks great! If you're one of the lucky people headed to SXSW, it'll debut at the Paramount Theatre on March 14th at 8:00 PM.

First Look: Grouplove's I'm With You Documentary

Grouplove's Spreading Rumours was one of the best albums of 2013. Shortly before Christmas, the band released I'm With You, an online documentary that mixes live performances with a look at the band's history:

First Look: A Journey To Planet Sanity

This documentary drops December 6th and looks funny as hell!

Your Guide To Becoming A Docuphile: Hands On A Hard Body

Bear with me, docuphiles. We're about to dig really deep into documentary lore. Hands On A Hard Body was a documentary I had heard about for a while, but haven't had much luck in finding more about it. Originally filmed in 1997, it was out of print for a long time before finally being released on DVD last year. There's still only the docuphile elite few who know of it, and in the weirdest twist of events, inspired the incredibly short-lived show on Broadway last year, with music co-written by Trey Anastasio of Phish. Yes, you read that correctly.

At face value, the documentary is simply a story about people in a small Texas town trying to win a truck. The Longview, TX Nissan dealership has an annual contest in which people compete to win a hard-body truck by being the last one standing with one hand on the truck. It's a game of stamina, mental manipulation, and survival. It's also about The American Dream: if you want something enough, you'll get it. It's about a descent into madness, what happens to people when they go three, four, even five days without sleep. It's about people having an experience together and the bond it forms, even though its very existence depends on manipulating the others to lose.

It's easy for me, the sophisticated and well-read West Coast city woman, to see these people and stereotype them as southern hicks with nothing better to do, but that is not fair or not helpful when viewing this film. Sure, the nineties fashion aesthetic doesn't help things, but this is a simple documentary about people. There's no overall message or agenda by the filmmakers; it simply lets you get to know the people who enter this contest and what it means to them. There's the smug previous champion, the woman who relies on prayer, and the familiar archetypes of the underdog and the villain.

I was actually surprised how invested I was in who would win and how tense I actually felt towards the end. I don't know why, but there's just something so fascinating about watching ordinary people.

I do, however, regret not being able to see the musical. Perhaps some community theater will revive it?

Your Guide to Becoming a Docuphile: Evocateur: The Morton Downey Jr Movie

Evocateur chronicles the rise and fall of Morton Downey Jr., son of Hollywood royalty and the pioneer, if you will, of trash television. I am embarrassed to say, even as quite the pop culture scholar that I fancy myself, I did not know much about his talk show. I was only ten when the Morton Downey Jr. Show was in its heyday, which lasted about two years, a mere blip on our attention spans.

Evocateur is a documentary that is well-crafted enough that it is nearly impossible not to be intrigued. The film also does its due diligence with covering Downey Jr.'s upbringing and rise to fame.. As the son of a Hollywood legend and a close friend of the Kennedy family, Downey Jr. seemed to have a charmed life. However, we are led to believe that he was a troubled man, always trying to live up to his father's ideals, and trying to use fame to cure his incredible insecurities. This angle is not uncommon among celebrity profiles, but it is a bold move to create this as a thesis statement, considering Downey Jr. is no longer with us and can't say anything in his defense.

Downey Jr., or at least the one portrayed on his show, was a total asshole. He had guests on to discuss things, yet never had any intent on discussing anything. Inevitably, he would end up screaming in their faces and kicking them off the set. He was especially known to go head-to-head with Al Sharpton, especially during the time of the Tawana Brawley case, in which a young woman was found to have made false claims about her rape and torture. In the biggest example of irony even a high school freshman could point out, Downey Jr. concocted his own fabricated attack in a last attempt for attention and fame.

Evocateur not only lets the audience know about the psyche of a man, but gives us a glimpse into how "news" and "entertainment" have merged into one vapid blob that is hard to discern. Downey Jr.'s shouting matches with guests are often how so-called "news" programs illustrate how to have a discussion. In fact, Jerry Springer owes a lot to Morton Downey, Jr. Like him or not, Evocateur will certainly convince you that he was a lot more complex than he may have appeared.

Your Guide to Becoming a Docuphile: Two Docs About Two Fascinating Families

Each column, I recommend lesser-known documentaries that I stumble across or are suggested to me, tweet me your suggestions @robinhardwick. This week, I look at two HBO documentaries that deal with the endurance of familial bonds.

My Flesh And Blood (2003)
My Flesh And Blood chronicles a year in the life of the Tom family. Susan Tom is the adoptive mother of thirteen children with serious mental and/or physical disabilities. My cynical self expected Susan Tom to consider herself a martyr and a savior. Sure, it's admirable, but is it possible? Is she really helping these children?

Absolutely. Susan provides a loving home for these children, but she is also stern when she needs to be and sets boundaries when needed. She shares her hardships, fears, and self-perceived failures in her quest to mother, which makes her relatable and not on a pedestal. The film only features a few of the children, who are fascinating and of course, heartbreaking. Faith was burned in a fire as a baby and suffers disfigurement that will affect her for the rest of her life. Xenia was born without legs, and appears to be very well adjusted and comfortable with her body, excelling socially in her junior high and is able to joke about her condition. Albert has a rare skin condition that gives him severe infections and loss of limbs. Finally, Joe has cystic fibrosis and is not expected to live much longer, along with severe HDHD and behavioral problems.

What I admire the most about this documentary is not a parade of illnesses and abnormalities. It's about Susan Tom dealing with whatever issues come along with parenting these children, which is anything from invasive hospital visits to typical parenting woes. What the camera shows is a well-behaved, although rambunctious group of kids, mostly due to Susan's patience. Even more surprising is that several of the children still have contact and relationships with their birth parents, which Susan encourages.

The most intriguing character is Susan's biological daughter Margaret, who at birth had brain illness but has since thrived without any recurring issues. Margaret acts as the second caretaker of the family, sacrificing a normal teenager's life for the care of her family. Now attending a nearby college, her situation begins to weigh on her and she suffers a near breakdown. Susan, despite being the caretaker of so many troubled kids, doesn't comfort her in the way you'd expect.

The documentary only covers a very short time, and even though this is an uplifting documentary, the viewer can't help but wonder what the future holds; several of her children are likely to die young, and several will need constant care for the rest of their lives. I've done extensive searches for what has become of the members of the Tom family, and other than an appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, there is little information about their fate. Maybe it is better not knowing.


There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane (2011)
Diane Schuler, loving mother, aunt, and respected community member, drove for two miles in the wrong direction on a freeway, colliding with a vehicle, killing her two children, three nieces, the three passengers of the other car, and herself. The children in the vehicle managed to call their parents, claiming that Aunt Diane was not acting like herself. I remember hearing about this story on the news and being haunted by what really happened in that car. The toxicology report indicated she was three times the legal alcohol blood level and had been smoking marijuana. Her husband adamantly denies that Diane used any substances; he maintains til this day that a mystery sudden illness caused the crash.

The filmmaker of There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane offered to cover the costs of hiring an investigator and retesting the blood samples if they could film a documentary about her family. Diane's husband and sister in law agreed to go forward; Diane's sister and the mother of the three girls who were killed declined to appear.

I vacillated between thinking that this family was in complete denial of Diane's problem, to thinking there was no way in hell she was drinking, and that something else had gone wrong. How well do you really know someone, even being married to them for nine years? Diane's friends and family are interviewed, painting a picture of Diane that was ideal yet not complete. The frustration of not being able to know the truth, coupled with watching the surviving family struggle with their grief makes this not suitable for a light viewing. Even after watching I still don't know what I truly believe.

First Look: Hair I Go Again

This documentary follows members of Tryxx, a hair band from the '80s who didn't make it the first time around so they're giving it another go:

First Look: Mr. Bitchin'

Here's the trailer for Mr. Bitchin', a documentary about famous artist Robert Williams, which hits theaters on July 30th:

Your Guide To Becoming A Docuphile: A Band Called Death

The "punk" lifestyle and movement typically conjures up anger, rebellion, isolation, etc. However, the new documentary, A Band Called Death is about the world's nicest punk band, Death, formed by three brothers in Detroit in the early seventies. What other punk band has the support of their parents to play as loud as they want in an upstairs spare room, but only from 3:00 PM to 6:00 PM? That isn't the only out-of-the-ordinary detail in the lives of the Hackney brothers documented in this film, which I have been eagerly anticipating ever since I heard Death's For The World To See album a few years ago. The documentary, out now in theaters and video on demand, can be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of your interest in punk music.

It's hard to even figure out where to start when talking about A Band Called Death. It's a film about music, religion, the importance of family, and a film about amazing consequences and fortuitous events. David, Bobby, and Dannis Hackney wanted to start a band in the early seventies and, being black, assumed that they would start a funk/soul band. After David saw The Who and Alice Cooper live, he convinced his brothers to play rock and roll. What emerged was the origin of the greats like The Ramones, The Stooges, MC5, and other punk-influenced bands. However, Death was doing this years before any of those bands did, but no one had heard them until 30 years later.

David Hackney, the leader and visionary of the band, had a very set vision for Death, which included a triumvirate of spiritual elements, represented by their triangle logo. Death's music got the attention of major labels with the one stipulation: they must change the name. David refused, and his brothers, despite their frustration, valued sticking with their brother over doing what the labels suggested. After numerous rejections merely because of their name, the Death concept was abandoned and the master tapes of their album were relegated to storage in an attic. Bobby and Dannis Hackney continued with music, finally forming a reggae band and putting death behind them.

Thirty-odd years later, the amazing journey of one of their record singles begins. A record collector foumd their single "Politicians In My Eyes" in a batch of used records, listened to it, was amazed at what he heard, told another major collector about it, who then posted about it on a popular message board. Suddenly everyone was on a mission to find an elusive Death single, and one appeared on eBay for eight hundred dollars. The single is transferred to mp3, played by punk music aficionados and at a party attended by Bobby Hackney's son, who never knew his father and uncles had a punk band. He begs his father to find the master tape, and the album is re-released to critical praise thirty-five years later.

As with any documentary that chronicles a time in the past, it can only rely on flashbacks from interviews. The surviving Hackney brothers (David died from lung cancer in 2000) and their families are so funny, emotional, and charismatic that I found myself not needing actual footage to relive the story. They seem generally so happy and at peace with life, it's hard to imagine them as a hardcore punk band. They are also delightfully "aw shucks" about their newfound fame, illustrated by a great moment and Bobby Hackney proclaims, generally surprised, "Why would anyone want to pay eight hundred dollars for that record? I would have just given him one."

This documentary is already rich with different parts of Death's story, and there is only so many elements it can cover, but it also leaves so many fascinating questions. Firstly, what was it like for these men to play a music genre associated with white artists in Detroit during the early seventies? What were people's reactions to that? Also, is this another case of something created by black artists, co-opted by white artists who then receive all the acclaim and fortune? Hard to say, since the music wasn't found until now, but the idea must have come up. I believe this film will bring Death even more attention than they already have had among music bloggers and record collectors, and perhaps these issues will come up in further discussions.

The surviving family members recall David Hackney as a genius, a visionary, who like many creative people, also struggles with depression and substance abuse. "Don't lose these tapes," he tells his brother Bobby after they get the master tapes back from the studio. "One day someone will come looking for them," and he couldn't have been more right.