Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind

Greetings again from the darkness. Natasha Gregson Wagner recalls hearing that the body of her mother, actress Natalie Wood, had been found near Santa Catalina Island. It was November 21, 1981 and Natasha was 11 years old. Now she's a producer of this documentary, as well as providing her own perspectives, and conducting some of the interviews, in particular the one with her stepfather Robert Wagner. If you are looking for a definitive answer to one of Hollywood's unsolved mysteries, you won't find it here (or anywhere). Instead, it's a dive into the life and career of one of our brightest stars through the words of her friends, family, and co-workers; plus some clips, personal home movies, previously unseen photographs, and Natalie's own words.

Natalie Woods' on screen luminescence lasted nearly forty years, which is remarkable considering she died at age 43. It's noted that generations (plural) watched her grow up. She delivered memorable roles at all stages of her career: as a child actor playing the Santa Claus skeptic in MIRACLE ON 34th STREET (1947); as an angsty teenager opposite James Dean in REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE (1955), as a blossoming young woman in SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS (1961); as a 1960's swinger in BOB AND CAROL AND TED AND ALICE (1969); and in her final role (released posthumously) in BRAINSTORM (1983). She was nominated for 3 Oscars by the time she was 25, and is also remembered as Maria in Best Picture winner WEST SIDE STORY (1961), as famed stripper Gypsy Rose Lee in GYPSY (1962), co-starring with Steve McQueen in LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER (1963), co-starring with Robert Redford in THIS PROPERTY IS CONDEMNED (1966), and opposite George Segal in the comedy THE LAST MARRIED COUPLE IN AMERICA (1980).

Clearly, given the films and roles listed above, Natalie Wood was the epitome of a movie star. She was beautiful, talented, and lived a life that kept her in the fan magazines (known today as tabloids). The film is structured in an unusual manner for a biographical documentary. A loose outline would start with the personal life (husbands, kids, love interests), then move into the career, and wrap up with her death, the aftermath of her death, and the impact she had on loved ones. Of course, there are many overlaps, but the key takeaway is that this is a very personal look by those who were connected to Natalie.

Laurent Bouzereau is a documentarian who has specialized in shorts and "making of" (behind-the-scenes) projects for 25 years. He's also an author, movie buff, and known collector of movie memorabilia. Here he delivers a nice tribute to Natalie Woods, though one gets the feeling that Natasha had much to do with the final presentation. We see her interview Daddy Gregson and Daddy Wagner, the only names she ever remembers having for her biological father, British Producer-Agent Richard Gregson, and her stepfather Robert Wagner. Gregson, afflicted with Parkinson's disease, died in August 2019, while Wagner is now 90 years old. Both interviews are personal to Natasha, though it's the Wagner session that packs the most emotional punch.

Even when we hear about Natalie's film career, it seems most want to talk about how likable and talented she was. This includes interviews with Robert Redford, Richard Benjamin, Mia Farrow, George Hamilton, and Mart Crowley. Mr. Crowley was a screenwriter and close friend who died recently (March 2020), and had met Natalie on the production of SPLENDOR IN THE GRASS. So while Ms. Woods' career is important, even more time is spent on the personal side. Natasha and her sisters recall time with Willie Mae, their nanny who was like part of the family. We also learn of Natalie and Wagner's (aka RJ) first date on her 18th birthday, as well as their two marriages to each other - with her marriage to Gregson, and relationship with Warren Beatty nestled between.

One of the more fascinating segments comes from Natasha reading excerpts from an unpublished first-person article Natalie had written for "Ladies Home Journal" in 1966. It reads like a diary and provided Natasha and us with personal insights we couldn't have known. Natalie's parents were Ukrainian immigrants, although not much time is devoted to Natalie's stage mother or the strained relationship the family now has with Natalie's sister (and actress) Lana Wood. Instead, the focus is mostly upbeat. Plus we all came for the Wagner interview to hear him speak about the night of Natalie's death. It's surprisingly emotional.

Natalie's oft-reported "fear of dark water" is hit head on, and there is even mention of her overdose and mental struggles. But this is mostly a positive recounting of her life, and owes a great deal to Manoah Bowman's biography "Natalie Wood: Reflections on a Legendary Life." Bowman is also a producer on the film. Natalie Wood is one whose mysterious and much too early death has overshadowed her work, and as daughter Natasha says, the person she was.

You feel it as a long honest confession more than subjective portrait. And that it is the main virtue of this documentary creating not a image, hommage and life lessons but a splendid chain of testimonies about the force, vulnerability and career of a wonderful woman, from the voices and emotions of family and friends. A film about Nathalie Wood, off course but, fortunatelly, more that. A great documentary about meanings of life, posterity and , maybe, happiness. The image and words of Robert Wagner are the most precious gift.

Natasha Gregson Wagner has given the world a truly beautiful tribute to her mother, wife, mom, actress, friend Natalie Wood. We are simply strangers who enjoyed and appreciated Natalie Wood's work.I feel we have been allowed to see an honest look into the person through the words and memories of the beautiful daughter she raised. It was open and very forthright, making no attempt to gloss over the difficult parts of any life. Heartwarming to see the close knit, fun, home life Natalie and Robert Wagner worked so hard to give their children, who were so obviously such a central and important part of their lives. It's very much past time the tabloids leave this family in peace. It is obvious Robert Wagner has put his heart and soul into doing the difficult job of raising these girls after Natalie's death. I always enjoyed seeing him interviewed by Robert Osbourne on TCM. Thank you for allowing us to see your memories of your mother Natasha. Very well done indeed.

Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind is a wonderful biography telling the story of Natalie Wood's life in a raw way from the perspectives of multiple people. The film gets into lots of details and aspects of her life. By the end, the audience knows all about who Natalie Wood was.

The film is composed of old video and audio clips of Natalie Wood as well as multiple interviews, some of which are conducted by Wood's daughter, Natasha. The clips follow in somewhat of a chronological order, but the film doesn't start off at the beginning of her life. It covers details and facts about her entire life, but skips around, going to different parts. It focuses on her success as a child, her family's struggles, her love life, and the drama surrounding her death. The documentary also highlights all of her achievements in her film career.

The people featured in the documentary represent Natalie Wood's extensive circle of family and friends. Their interviews tell their perspectives of Natalie and her life. Included are her daughters, the family nanny, her husband and people who worked with her.

I thought it was interesting the way that they decided to skip around to different phases in her life. Normally documentaries pursue a chronological order, starting from the beginning and following through to the end. In contrast, this documentary is really effective in the way it skips around, because it gives the audience a bit of background information before returning to explain some aspect in deeper detail. I liked this because it allowed me to get a general idea first of what Natalie Wood was like and then what she experienced. I could see how people viewed her from the outside and then, the film delves deeper into a closer perspective by her friends and family.

My favorite parts are the home videos of Natalie Wood with her children. These clips make you realize that, even though she was under the pressure of the spotlight all the time and looks perfect, she is a human being with a life too.

The purpose of this documentary is to honor Natalie Wood and show people how great a life she lived. Some people focus more on the tragedy of her death and overlook her legacy in the film industry.

I loved watching and learning more about Natalie Wood's wonderful story. I give Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind 5 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 10 to 18. Even adults will enjoy learning from this documentary.

Reviewed by Jolleen M., KIDS FIRST! Reporter

"Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind" (2020 release; 101 min.) is a documentary about the life and times of Natalie Wood. As the movie opens, we hear in voice-over Natalie's daughter Natasha who was 11 at the time of her mother's death, lamenting that "How she died has overshadowed her work and the person that she was". We then go back in time to Natalie's early years, and how she started in the movies at a very young age (5). Friend of the family Robert Redford comments "To survive in the movie business you have to be tough, but Natalie also had a big heart." Along the way we get clips of Natalie talking about her craft. At this point we are 10 min. into the movie.

Couple of comments: this documentary is from the French director Laurent Bouzereau, best known for his dozens and dozens "making of" documentaries,. More importantly, the movie is produced by Natasha Gregson Wagner, Natalie's oldest daughter. From the interviews with/by Natasha and also her younger sister (Natalie's youngest daughter Courtney who was 7 when Natalie died), it is clear that both have been haunted for years about the early passing of their mother. There is of course some irony in the fact that the movie opens with the very thing that Natasha is complaining about (her death overshadowing Natalie's work and the person she was). Roughly speaking the first half of the movie deals with the person that Natalie was, and the second half presents a closer look at Natalie's incredible Hollywood career. You can sense the love and the respect for Natalie throughout, as one might expect from a film produced by Natalie's daughter, but the movie does also address the tumultuous personal life and relationships that Natalie went through.

"Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind" premiered on HBO earlier this week and is now available on HBO On Demand and other streaming services. If you have any interest in a slice of Hollywood history or are simply a fan of Natalie Wood, I'd readily suggest you check this out and draw your own conclusion.