A fascinating yet heartbreaking insight into the life of Nina Simone, iconic singer and civil rights activist, a child piano prodigy determined to be the first black woman to perform solo at Carnegie Hall.
From a lonely isolated childhood, enormous popularity in the 1960s and social ostracism from White America as she became more and more active in the Civil Rights Movement, Simone was dogged with depression, abuse as well as stardom itself.
Voiceover commentary alongside archival interviews from the singer as well as family and friends provides testimony to a woman of extraordinary talent, fiery temperament and fragile mental health. It’s a deeply moving 100 minutes where director Liz Garbus includes not only time spent with the artist herself but lengthy sequences of Simone’s performances from throughout her career.
Nominated for the 2016 Best Documentary Oscar.
Rating: 74%
Director: Liz Garbus (Girlhood, Bobby Fischer Against the World)
An Opinion or Two 