20 Feet from Stardom (2013) Review

3.5/5

There are two qualities to this film that it should display proudly as its tagline: "This film moves, and it has life!" Everything in this film has a bounciness, an almost carefree attitude to entertain us as much as its subjects entertained others in their own times.



When we think back to old, classic songs, what do we hum? The melodies. Who sings the melodies? Usually, the background singers. And, 20 feet from stardom, they sing because they care. People don't watch, and frequently they mention that their egos aren't as large. Why do they do it? People steal from these artists, cheat these artists, mentally abuse these artists. So why? They love it. One singer in the film describes it as a feather lightly floating to the ground. Few people in life find that peace, and these singers have it.
Their voices are simply incredible. Watching them perform (interchanged with interviews form some very famous people for which these talents sang) is a treat. Some footage in the film, of recording sessions or concerts or behind-the-stage interactions, is worth the price of admission alone. Throw in the fact that there is genuine joy i the voices and eyes of these performers and you have yourself a documentary worthy of serious admiration.
The pitfall that I found, and it is a big one, is that we are never really introduced to the three main singers. We meet up with them from their rise in the background singing world, and continue to the present day, but I want to know where they came from. I found it hard to fully connect with the characters because I didn't really know them. I know they are talented, and on that note (no pun intended) it is a great experience to be hand, but in terms of emotional connection with the film I felt shortchanged. I wouldn't consider this an issue if the film didn't sometimes expect that these connections had formed.
Beautiful and heartbreaking, this is a documentary that gets a rare seal of approval from this critic. It isn't perfect, but it's a near damn good time.