Beautiful Darling (2011)

77% of critics liked it
(13 reviews)
80% of users liked it
(192 ratings)

Born in a Long Island suburb in 1944, James Slattery immediately felt drawn to the feminine side of life -- to such a degree that he established himself as one of the most iconic of all female impersonators, Candy Darling. As given life by Slattery, this young, sexy, and alluring blonde actress… More Born in a Long Island suburb in 1944, James Slattery immediately felt drawn to the feminine side of life -- to such a degree that he established himself as one of the most iconic of all female impersonators, Candy Darling. As given life by Slattery, this young, sexy, and alluring blonde actress single-handedly overtook Manhattan. She attained her greatest recognition for her portrayals in two Paul Morrissey-directed films: Flesh (1968) and Women in Revolt (1971), both produced by Andy Warhol. Mainstream stardom soon beckoned to Darling, but aside from bit appearances in such productions as Klute (1971) -- and playwright Tennessee Williams's decision to cast her in a production of his Small Craft Warnings -- she continued to suffer from marginalization. Internally, if Darling suffered from an intense and bitter loneliness that propelled her into a life-long search for love, she also wielded boundless courage -- the same courage that enabled her to transform herself from a Long Island-bred young man into a Manhattan glamour goddess. Tragically, she died of lymphoma at age 29, soon after attaining stardom. James Rasin's documentary Beautiful Darling pays unfettered tribute to Darling's all-too-brief life and career, with a combination of current and vintage interview material, rarely seen archival photos and footage, and extracts from Darling's movies. Rasin weaves much of the material around the theme of fidelity to one's true self and deepest convictions, as exemplified by Darling. Morrissey executive produced. ~ Nathan Southern, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 25 min.
Directed By: James Rasin
Genres: Documentary, Television, Special Interest

In Theaters: Apr 22, 2011 Limited
On DVD: Feb 1, 2012

Critic Reviews

Mark Jenkins, Washington Post
Darling's fragility was no secret, which gives even the movie's comical moments an underlying poignancy.
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times
"Beautiful Darling" is sympathetic and critical, a sobering reminder in this fame-grabbing age of a time when gender politics, art and artifice could make for a turbulent identity cocktail.
Loren King, Boston Globe
Like fellow Factory figures Edie Sedgwick and Jackie Curtis, Darling now gets her own documentary, and proves a more than worthy subject.
Stephen Whitty, Newark Star-Ledger
A fairly besotted look, produced under the guidance of a longtime friend.
Lou Lumenick, New York Post
"Beautiful Darling" makes extensive use of photos, sketches and Darling's diaries belonging to Jeremiah Newton, a gay pal she lived with on and off until her death from cancer in 1974.
Stephen Holden, New York Times
A sad, lyrical reflection on the foolish worship of movie stars.
Chris Barsanti, Filmcritic.com
Eventually, everybody who ever spent five minutes with Andy Warhol will have a film made about them
Liz Pelly, Boston Phoenix
A discomforting look at a transsexual actress's difficult life and isolating pursuit of fame.
David Noh, Film Journal International
This riveting documentary about one of the legendary triumphant gender illusionists is also a compelling portrait of an endlessly fascinating era.
Keith Uhlich, Time Out New York
The film isn't blinded by Candy's beauty and celebrity; it digs critically, if still empathetically, beneath.
Ed Gonzalez, Slant Magazine
Perhaps it's time we acknowledged that, despite their outré appetites, Warhol's superstars may have been legitimately boring people.