Britney: For the Record

I've always liked Britney as a performer and I was looking forward to seeing this documentary in the hope that she would reveal that she's gotten some insight into her life. If she has, it was displayed in the film at a sadly superficial level. She states she's had to "grow up" and she's "learned a lot" these past few difficult years, but from what is shown, I didn't actually see any profound evidence of it.

I was also hoping she would shed some light on her bizarre behavior regarding the court custody hearings, how she kept showing up late or not at all (yet in the course of the film she mentions more than once how dearly she loves her kids). And she never talks about the hospital incident either. All her statements seem to be planned out to reveal the least possible about herself; it's more like she was using the documentary for publicity.

Ironically, the only person who speaks from any genuine wisdom in the course of the film is Madonna, who talks about how a person creates his or her own reality and how Britney has at least begun the self-examination process by asking "What was I thinking" regarding this year's events.

At the end, she is asked how she will change her life to reflect her new so-called insights, and she responds by saying she will go through her life like "a karate kid." She then grins a self-satisfied grin, as if she's uttered something profound. She hasn't.

STAR RATING: ***** Saturday Night **** Friday Night *** Friday Morning ** Sunday Night * Monday Morning

Though maybe not at the height of her media stranglehold when she first took off in the 1999/2000 sort of period, Britney Spears is still quite a tabloid favourite, and the comings and goings of her private life are still quite hot topics in all the various showbiz gossip magazines/columns. Photos of her can still sell for a fair bit, too, as the various papparazzos chasing after her in this documentary prove. But around 2007/2008 the strain started to show and her mental health began to very publicly deteriorate. The ruthless ambition with which she made it at such a young age was revealed to be more a product of her mother pushing her towards something more than her own will and being burned out while still at quite a young and imperative age was causing her to rebel big style. For a period in the latter year, this documentary caught her in her private life, talking about the bad decisions she made, where her mind began to crumble, and how the help of friends and family (especially her father, who's now also in charge of a lot of her personal affairs) helped get her back on her feet again, as she prepares for her 'Circus' comeback tour.

Britney comes over a lot more grounded and mature than when she first started out, an old head on young shoulders, as though she's become very accepting and unfazed by the world she's a part of and nothing can hurt her now, like she could offer some useful advice to anyone else entering the profession. Here and there, though, she comes over all emotionally unstable, very suddenly, like anything could bring it on. There could well be some kind of mental disorder going on there. The interviewer is wise to let the lady herself do most of the talking, and let her naturally open up about a lot of what she needs to get off her chest. It's all handled very searingly, with a fair bit of hidden depth, like something that was meant to answer questions and not just be a throwaway interview. There's obviously still a large fan base that is interested in Spears's life and what's going on in it, and with sensitivity and compassion, the result here is a perfectly adequate piece that should satisfy a lot of Spears's more dedicated fans. ***

So I figured I'd take a chance last night and watch the new Britney Spears documentary on MTV, chronicling her life for 60 days, beginning on the eve of the MTV Video Music Awards this past September. I must say I was pleasantly surprised. It's no secret that Britney's life has been a crazy roller-coaster ride for the past few years. But when all is said and done, inside, she's just a normal person like you and I. It turns out that she's got a great sense of humor (her impression of her father was hysterical!), she's very perceptive and intelligent, and she goes through turmoil and pain like the rest of us do. This documentary definitely showed us that Britney is just a regular girl who just happens to be chased around by photographers day and night. It really broke my heart to watch some of the things she has to go through. Just exiting a vehicle and entering a building is a project in itself for Brit, and I couldn't imagine having to live like that. I definitely have a newfound respect for her after watching this special. She's just a normal person who loves her babies, loves to work, hang out and goof around with friends. I have no doubt that with the upcoming release of her newest album, "Circus", Brit will definitely shine. She has the drive, she has the talent, and now she has the support of her family and of people who really care about her, not those who have taken advantage of her in the past, as she discusses. Not to sound corny, but I'm definitely inspired by her - she shows that no matter the obstacle, no matter what kind of mess you've gotten yourself into, there's always that light at the end of the tunnel. She may have stumbled a bit to get to this point, but it's safe to say that Britney has finally seen that light. I wish her much success!! She deserves it.

This documentary won't give you every detail of every terrible situation Britney Spears found herself in from her divorce in 2006 to her hostage situation involving one of her sons in early 2008. It will cover some of the events in between in minor detail but the important thing to remember going in is this: This documentary was made just months after her initial recovery and at a time when she was very obviously still healing. Anyone going in expecting clear, concise answers from a damaged person still processing everything is going to be disappointed or frustrated at her half answers, awkward silences or fragmented statements. This doco was probably made a little too soon after the craziness died down - I actually would've been more interested on her take on those events *now* that she has found a seemingly normal personal life, two successful world tours and some decent radio success (as well as a nice heaping of self serving sympathy from Hollywood - yeah, thanks for nothing MTV!).

The production of this documentary is flawless - not a fault to be had. This is a very quiet, understated film subtly soundtracked by a collection of instrumentals from various independent artists as well as instrumentals from Spears Circus album at the time. It's interesting how well the two sounds blend together quite well as is a testament to the maturity of that album. One of the highlights was seeing Britney recording a few tracks from the album (Womanizer and Trouble). Britney is so snowed under with tabloids, cameras, general madness - the music seems to take a back seat despite it being what most of us crave the most from her. So, I revelled seeing her singing raw in the studio, having fun with her producers and generally being free. She obviously still finds a joy in being creative. She approaches her dance rehearsals with fire and determination and, best of all, with a big smile on his face. A little unsettling was her declaration that "art is my therapy". I think someone who has been through the life altering events she has absolutely needs therapy but she won't find any answers on a dancefloor or in a studio. She may find a peace of same sort but that still won't make it any easier to deal with the 30+ rabid men waiting outside for her at any given time.

If anyone doubted Britney's continued relevance, they need only observe the hoards of fans and media mobbing her any time she enters a public space. Paparazzi cause Britney to shout "I'm scared! I'm scared!" as she simply tries to enter a department store (she later has to leave with a blanket covering her). An eerie long line of fans awaits her as she leaves her hotel. They stand blankly in line cameras at the ready, not sure which SUV holds the star. The cast of a Broadway musical eagerly crowd around her and try desperately to relate to her but a few minutes conversation reveals how many worlds away from them she is. All the same age, same jobs but only one of them has a "baby daddy" who disallows her to leave LA. While the others talk about which cities they prefer Britney remains silent, her only contributions being "It hurts coming back here", "I used to live here..." while her narration laments good nights out as being bittersweet because she knows how fleeting they are. It's clear she could benefits from a few friends as her team treats her much too young. But how does Britney Spears find.friends when, as she says, she needs security just to walk down a street? It's around.this point, as Britney sits alone in a darkened room, that the ugly side of fame isn't just a bad picture or a mob of fans - its a step by step breakdown of every basic human need - privacy, friendship, acceptance, peace - until you're nothing but a blank slate piece of public property.

Ultimately, despite the tacked on happy ending, this is a depressingly honest examination of fame and a young woman who personifies the best and worst of it. She examines herself, her fame, why she still works within this industry and how she made it through the darkest part of her life. She doesn't have concrete answers or explanations for all her actions (and considering she was unknowingly being drugged for the good part of 2007, does she even remember some things?) but she does offer a decent amount of introspection and insight into a very complicated, layered situation.

I would recommend this to anyone studying modern fame, anyone looking to change their opinion of Brit or any fan of Britney's.

I do not expect many people on this site to understand, or further more like Britney Spears. To me, she is a wonderful, talented, intelligent person who just went on a very wrong path. Everybody makes mistakes and I am very glad that she decided to do this documentary to tell people about all the problems she faced.

I love how she just talks about how she is a strong person, and you can totally tell she is, because after all the crap she went through, she is still standing; singing, dancing, smiling, and laughing her way through it all, and even when she's down, she still finds a way to look as happy as ever. In this documentary, Britney mainly focuses on telling everyone how she has been taken advantage of and her relationships caused her severe problems, in which to those problems, she chose bad decisions, and she understands that. She even manages to tell the audience that she doesn't even know herself what the hell she was thinking and to me that shows a very bold and courageous woman.

I love her, and of course all her fans like me love her, and sure she has haters, but every celebrity does, and all in all, this documentary did get a little boring at times, but it really showed the true Britney Spears, and made me, and should make a lot of other people, appreciate the already widely loved pop idol. She's a very smart, brave, beautiful, and of course wonderfully voiced person who is just stereotyped by so many people for the wrong reasons.

Last things I have to say, is that this is very powerful, and a lot of people should watch it. It catches your full attention and you enjoy seeing all the good, positive things about Britney's life, and you feel pity for her when you hear all the bad, negative things she's been through. Loved this documentary, and I definitely, no doubt about it, love Britney Spears.