20 Feet from Stardom
Starring: Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, Judith Hill, Lou Adler, Patti Austin, Chris Botti, Todd Boyd, Sheryl Crow, Mick Jagger, Bette Midler, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Maxine Waters, Stevie Wonder
Directed by: Morgan Neville
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Documentary
2013

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Explores the unsung heroes of music, the backup singers.

Review:

Tim: When I first read about 20 Feet from Stardom, I thought, "Huh. A documentary about backup singers." Interesting maybe? They are backup singers for a reason, right? Like so many things in life, my cursory understanding was inadequate. Morgan Neville crafts an exceptionally well constructed film that explores incredibly talented people who have vastly contributed to our culture, yet mostly go unnoticed. I'd never heard of Darlene Love, Merry Clayton, Lisa Fischer, or Judith Hill. But, I've definitely heard them sing before. That was one of the biggest attractions of this film- it shines a light on people who have made a difference, people we should know about. But, we don't.

Honestly, I'd never really given much thought to backup singers. My sense (probably like many) is that they were less talented individuals, good enough to accompany the star, but not stars in their own right. I had no idea of the importance of this role, the influence they have had on music. It was fascinating to learn about these important people who have impacted American music and culture, yet no one really talks about them. The public remains unaware. I loved this documentary for that reason.

The film is well crafted by Neville. As the movie progresses, you feel like you get to know Love, Clayton, Fischer and the others. Their personalities emerge, their stories unfold. At times, they are incredibly inspiring. at times infuriating and heartbreaking. The movie does explore some of the more unethical sides of the music industry and it's devastating to hear how scumbags like Phil Spector and other music producers exploited and derailed promising music careers. These women's stories are incredible and they deserve for all of us to know their names and what they contributed to the world. But, this isn't a depressing documentary- it's one filled with love, life, positivity, and hopefulness. To watch these unsung women reflect on their life is truly powerful. They might have been "20 feet from stardom", but they accomplished amazing things in their careers.

Now, I was a really big fan of this film and I think it absolutely deserved to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary. The importance of this film, of capturing these women's stories and influence for posterity is absolutely vital. I'm so happy this documentary exists and I'd recommend it to any music fan. I think the movie itself probably just misses out on greatness. This is primarily because the film's staying power isn't quite as strong as needed. The documentary covers a great deal of ground. What I'll remember is that backup singers contribute far more than I ever expected and we should honor them for that. As far as the specific singers, we don't get quite enough time with any of them. Their general stories with stay with me, but their names, their specifics? Those will unfortunately fade with time. This isn't a major detriment to the film, but more time needed to spent with some singers and less with others. I'm not sure Judith Hill fit well here- she represents a more modern perspective, but it felt like she took up time that needed to be spent more with Love, Clayton, or Fischer.

Still, this doesn't change the fact that Morgan Neville has crafted an extremely well done documentary that does good in the world and informs us about extraordinary talent that we've sadly overlooked. 20 Feet from Stardom is well worth viewing.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



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