United Kingdom 2019, 96 min, English, Hebrew subtitles
More than sixty years after her death, Billy Holiday’s turbulent (and tragic) life story is told from an unexpected new angle. Hundreds of hours of tape-recordings featuring family members, lovers, musicians who worked with her (from Count Basie to Charlie Mingus), and even cops and pimps—have been uncovered in the personal archive of a journalist who dreamed of one day writing Holiday’s biography, until she ran out of time. The journalist, Linda Lipnack Kuehl, spent years interviewing everyone whose life ever crossed paths with Holiday’s. The detailed bare-all interviews are accompanied by photographs and rare, restored footage of Holiday’s life and performances. Together they form a treasure trove of history and music, packed to bursting with sharply shifting emotions that range from dread to delight.
Previous Festivals: Telluride Film Festival
