Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work


This is a documentary on the life and career of Joan Rivers, made as the comedienne turns 75 years old. The movie starts with a close-up of an old woman without makeup and as the makeup is applied you realize its Joan Rivers. I am a fan of Joan’s and I found this documentary to be a very revealing portrait. Take away all the trappings of success and stardom and we see a woman who is very insecure and has held on to things from the past. For instance as a very young girl who acted in the theater, you find out that she always wanted to be an actress and this documentary shows that at 75 yrs. old she is still trying?! The movie also reveals one of the reasons why she has taken on all the plastic surgery, bad things have been said to her face about her looks and the things she would like to hear (you are beautiful) have not.
We also hear about her rise to success with Johnny Carson and her fall with her husband who ended up killing himself and leaving her broke and in debt. If you don’t like Joan Rivers you may end up liking her after seeing this. I loved that she is a fighter and she has never quit nor does she plan to. I got tired just watching her execute her schedule. If you are retired watching this movie you will make you feel like a wimp.

Verdict: An amazing piece of work.

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