That's Showbiz, Kid

Tuesday night my friend Dave took me to Lincoln Center to see the new documentary Best Worst Thing That Ever Could Have Happened... (2016). Directed by one of the stars of the original doomed Broadway cast, Best Worst chronicles the creation of the Stephen Sondheim/Harold Prince musical Merrily We Roll Along (1981) which famously closed after only 16 performances.

It's a really great documentary that parallels the story of Merrily with the lives and careers of a cast of Broadway hopefuls whose lives didn't exactly turn out the way they thought they would. It reminded me that life in the spotlight isn't always what it's cracked-up to be- and often the backstage story is as interesting as what gets shown on the big screen.

Here are my Top 5 Documentaries about people in the movie biz:

Marlene (1984)

Marlene Dietrich was one of the biggest stars of the Golden Age of Hollywood. Launched as Paramount's answer to Greta Garbo, Dietrich quickly became a star in her own right, lighting up silver screens (and bedrooms) from the early '30's until the late '50's with her unique brand of Teutonic beauty and glamour. But after her performance as German war widow Frau Bertholt in Judgement at Nuremberg (1961), Dietrich said goodbye to Hollywood and focused on her traveling one-woman show until a nasty spill off a stage in 1975 broke her thigh and her spirit. Dietrich would eventually seek the comfort of her Paris apartment- and in true Garbo fashion- wanted to be left alone.

In the early '80's Dietrich's Nuremberg co-star, Maximilian Schell coaxed Dietrich into participating in a documentary about her legendary life. Well, sort of. Dietrich agreed to be interviewed for the documentary- but not to be filmed. So Schell was left with a set of audio tapes and film clips of her old movies to construct a whole documentary. But he did it. Shot like an art film, Marlene uses Dietrich's voice and shadowed reconstructions to bring to life the great star at a time when she was no longer the glamorous Hollywood icon- but an angry recluse whose memories bounce from German to English and from reverence to venom at the tap of a cigarette.

It's a strange and sad portrait of stardom that would garner an Oscar nom for Best Documentary. Read Dietrich's daughter's biography Marlene Dietrich for more fascinating insight into this riveting Hollywood personality.





Divine Trash (1998)

John Waters has always been an out-loud and proud ambassador for his unique brand of cinematic kitsch/filth. His pencil-thin mustache is as recognizable as the trashy characters from his films. But there's more to this indie film idol than meets the eye. Steve Yeager's documentary Divine Trash wonderfully chronicles Waters' rise in the Baltimore suburbs along with his muse, Glenn Milstead- better known as drag artist Divine. The two began making films together in 1966 and their unique brand of raunchy comedy and equally perverse castmates took them from 8mm short films to nationwide cult hits.

But what is intriguing about this offscreen look at some of the most notorious movies ever made (the "singing butthole" guy from Pink Flamingos (1972) refused to be filmed in full lighting) is Waters' dedication to filmmaking.

From the very beginning he studied editing and shooting to create the "homemade" quality of his films. While his eyes twinkle about all the drugs they were on, actress Mink Stole recalls how important the script was- having to endure multiple re-takes until she got lines and blocking exactly right.

As loose and amateur as Waters' films feel, he was in fact using his camera and his actors to very specific effect. While it doesn't deal with his more mainstream successes like Hairspray (1988), Divine Trash gives us a window on the mind and revolutionary times of one of filmdom's most unique storytellers. And if you'd like to see a list of movies that John Waters likes, click here.

On Cukor (2000)

George Cukor was one of the greatest directors of the Studio Era. Not everyone thinks of Ol' George when naming iconic directors because he wasn't known for a striking visual style. What Cukor excelled at was smart properties and getting the best performances from his actors.

Twenty-one actors were nominated for Oscars in Cukor films and five of them took home the trophy. Cukor was labeled a woman's director because of his work crafting performances with actresses like Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford, and Kate Hepburn. But Cukor was also masterful with some of the best male actors in the business like Spencer Tracy, Cary Grant, and Jimmy Stewart.

Cukor's long history in Hollywood is covered in loving detail in the American Masters special On Cukor, and it's particularly fascinating because it delves into Cukor's homosexuality. Cukor was a classic example of a Hollywood mover and shaker whose sexuality was well-known, but never discussed publicly. The Tinsletown Closet allowed some artists to be gay, but never in situations where the public or press could find out.

For Cukor it meant hiding his sexuality at work, but Angela Landsbury who earned an Oscar nod in Cukor's Gaslight (1944) tells of Cukor's Sunday brunches at his home where he and his friends could let their hair down and be themselves. Oh if that pool could talk. On Cukor is a wonderful glimpse of Cukor's extraordinary body of work and his guarded private life.

Marilyn Monroe - The Final Days (2001)

Speaking of Cukor, Marilyn Monroe and Cukor paired-up on one of Hollywood's most famous unfinished films. Cukor directed Monroe in the My Favorite Wife (1940) re-make Something's Got to Give (1962). Their previous film together Let's Make Love (1960) was only successful in getting Monroe and her co-star Yves Montand's affair into the gossip rags. Monroe's next film The Misfits (1961), while fascinating, was a box office dud. So Monroe and 20th Century Fox hoped that Something and Cukor could re-establish her as the queen of the box office. She missed the throne... 

The Final Days details the making of Something with interviews with many of the people involved in the project and footage from the film- thought lost long ago. They reveal a woman who was fighting for her career while at the same time struggling with personal demons that would ultimately scotch the film- and later her life. It is a touching portrait of a woman the world has consistently tried to define- but always falls short of fully discovering.

The documentary ends with a reconstruction of forty-five minutes of Something so that we can take a peek into that remarkable world of "What if?" Monroe is luminous and funny- her Sixties look beguiling. It's hard to believe that the tragedy that would end her life was just two months away.

The Kid Stays in the Picture (2002)

Robert Evans was discovered by Norma Shearer because she thought he looked like her deceased producer husband, Irving Thalberg. Evans would go from playing a producer to being one. Producers and agents are often the catalysts to so much of what we see on the screen long before it ever makes it there. The deals, the dinners, the phonecalls- all the work that goes into a picture is usually hidden from public view. But The Kid Stays in the Picture is one of those movies that makes the audience feel like they are insiders in the Hollywood Game.

Evans started off as an actor, but quickly realized his charm and savvy could make more moolah as a producer. Evans landed at Paramount after nabbing the screenrights to The Detective (1968) for Frank Sinatra and for the next almost forty years he has been hustling to make some great movies. If his list of movies is impressive (The Godfather (1972), Chinatown (1974), and Marathon Man (1976)) his life as the quintessential Hollywood producer is the stuff of movie legend. 

The Kid is based on Evans' autobiography of the same name, so one gets the feeling that not all the bodies are exhumed (like his close friendship to Roman Polanski during his child rape case), but Evans' coke-fueled downfall is covered with enough candor to make us feel like Evans is shooting straight with us. His Rolodex is a collection of the biggest Hollywood stars of the '60's and '70's and this film allows us to flip through it... and watch Dustin Hoffman do his Robert Evans impersonation.

What are your favorites docs about Hollywood?