HBO's 'documentary film' is not exactly a standard trot through the hits and career highlights, as the film tries to explore the woman that Donna Summer was, her different professional and personal personas, and the familial, societal and commercial forces that shaped her career - a tall order indeed. Always difficult to pin down, this remarkably talented artist who trailblazed across the charts and formats of music in the late 70s/early 80s in particular is shown here through remarkable archive and personal family footage, notably through seemingly open personal reflections of her close family members. It is quite effective in its consideration of Summer's significance in terms of music, gender and race, but it does feel a little too scattershot and selective to give a wholly coherent overview, as if there are two documentaries (the music and the personal life) vying for attention and screen time throughout; her significant exploitative (male) relationships and the fallout with Casablanca Records are mentioned but hardly developed, and her late 80s European PWL comeback and the MTV Encore triumph not mentioned at all. The film makes a good effort to cover as many bases as it can within its lean running time, and the conflict between career, faith. motherhood and her public/private lives are placed at the heart of this well-intentioned and interesting documentary.
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