Janis: Little Girl Blue

Composed of archive footage and contemporary interviews carefully selected by the director, this Janis Joplin documentary is part of a musical legends biopics trend (most recent examples include films about Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, and Kurt Cobain). However, as noted by consequenceofsound.net, Janis has as much in common with typical films about rock 'n roll stars as the film's protagonist shares with her schoolyard friends. "Little Girl Blue"is not cool in any normal sense of the word. It's honest, emotional and reflective, as much if not more about Joplin as a person than as a talent or a legend.The film uses Joplin's personal writings, photographs from family archives, recordings, but above all letters, and returns to the star's Texas childhood marked by painful rejection and alienation. It reflects on her career in San Francisco, the tough beginnings, complicated relationships with the band, the atmosphere of Woodstock and her first loves. Here, her former musical colleagues, industry professionals, friends and lovers filled in the picture. They are the ones who paint the image of a star who was equally talented as she was lacking in self-confidence, who never stopped being just a girl from Texas.