Janis: Little Girl Blue

This chilling tale, fraught with emotional honesty, tells the story of a young girl trying desperately to find happiness. The musical phenomenon who is Janis Joplin is well known, but who really knows the human being behind the voice?

Amy Berg’s Janis: Little Girl Blue delves into the misunderstood mind of Janis Joplin before and during her rise to worldwide fame, told primarily through her own words in the letters she wrote home. It’s more than a celebration of one of the most incredible voices of the 20^th Century, it is a haunting window into the troubled human soul. This is real, gritty humanity with a magnificent soundtrack.

The documentary is full of tragedy. It’s difficult to watch but it’s impossible to turn away from the complicated, insecure person on screen that exists in everyone.

Chan Marshall (better known as singer-songwriter Cat Power) provides a beautifully sad narration that adds rich emotional depth to Joplin’s written thoughts and feelings. Others featured include Joplin’s brother and sister, Michael Joplin and Laura Joplin, and countless close friends and associates, such as TV host Dick Cavett and Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead, who each provide intimate insight into the singer’s life.

Amy Berg has done a wonderful job writing and directing Janis: Little Girl Blue. The narrative flows brilliantly, pulling the audience back and forth through emotional highs and lows as Joplin reaches higher and higher while pioneering musical creativity and inspiring generations.

The documentary looks through the fame, utilising unseen material to make this previously out-of-reach megastar a relatable, intimately-known love. No one will ever think of Janis Joplin the same way again.

Janis: Little Girl Blue is a beautiful and gripping story of a complex, misunderstood soul who longed for something more. It’s sad, it’s wonderful and the music is perfect.

Jim Compton-Hall

Janis: Little Girl Blue is released nationwide on 5^th February 2016.

Watch the trailer for Janis: Little Girl Blue here: