The Punk Singer

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

3.2K

YOUR RATING

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Music Documentary Biography Documentary Music

A look at the life of activist, musician, and cultural icon Kathleen Hanna, who formed the punk band Bikini Kill and pioneered the "riot grrrl" movement of the 1990s.A look at the life of activist, musician, and cultural icon Kathleen Hanna, who formed the punk band Bikini Kill and pioneered the "riot grrrl" movement of the 1990s.A look at the life of activist, musician, and cultural icon Kathleen Hanna, who formed the punk band Bikini Kill and pioneered the "riot grrrl" movement of the 1990s.

Director
- Sini Anderson
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.4/10

3.2K

YOUR RATING

Director
- Sini Anderson
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 win & 6 nominations total

Self
(as Kathi Wilcox)

Tobi Vail

Self

Billy Karren

Self
(archive footage)

Becca Albee

Self

Corin Tucker

Self

Allison Wolfe

Self
(as Allison C. Wolfe)

Ann Powers

Self - Music Critic

Lynn Breedlove

Self
(as Lynnee Breedlove)

Sara Marcus

Self - Author of 'Girls to the Front: The True Story of the Riot Grrrl Revolution'

Jennifer Baumgardner

Self

Rebecca Walken

Self

Anna Joy Springer

Self

Adam Horovitz

Self

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9:57

Storyline

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Did you know

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Quotes
[last lines]
Kathleen Hanna: I don't give a shit what people think. I know what's real, I don't care if people don't think feminism is important, because I know it is. And I don't care if people don't think late stage Lyme disease exists, because I have it, and other people have it. And we help each other, and we know it exists. And other people can think what they want. My problem is when people get in the way of feminism. Or people get in the way of people who are sick, getting better, because they don't understand it. And if they don't believe in it or they don't want to care about it, that's totally fine, but they should have to stay out of my way.

Connections
References La Petite Sirène (1989)

Soundtracks
Rebel Girl
Written by Kathleen Hanna, Billy Karren, Tobi Vail, Kathryn Wilcox (as Kathi Wilcox)
Performed by Bikini Kill
Courtesy of Bikini Kill Records
From the album "Yeah Yeah Yeah Yeah"

User reviews14

Featured review

8/10

"I'm your worst nightmare come to life! I'm a girl who you can't shut up!"

"I'm your worst nightmare come to life! I'm a girl who you can't shut up!" On an old home video in a tiny living room, a woman screams about pain, feminism, and the aggression of men in Olympia, Washington, in 1991. It's the voice of Kathleen Hanna, who will front groundbreaking punk band Bikini Kill and feminist party band Le Tigre, help launch the Riot Grrrl movement, inspire a mainstream grunge rock scene dominated by men, and courageously and emphatically serve as the mouthpiece for every girl who thought she could only whisper things in her bedroom.

Over 20 years later, Hanna is finally given her day in rock history in director Sini Anderson's award-winning documentary THE PUNK SINGER. The origin stories this born leader, third wave feminist icon, and ultimate low-fi artist are brought to life through archival footage, intimate interviews, and commentaries by Kim Gordon, Carrie Brownstein, Ann Powers, Adam Horovitz, and former bandmates. Hanna's in-your-face activism—through lyrics, zines, and manifestos—moved women to the front, literally and figuratively. Two decades later, Hanna is still ripping down barriers of music and gender and art, still proudly saying "Stay out of my way!"