Diane Warren: Relentless

“Diane Warren: Relentless” comes through in presenting its subject as a complicated, vulnerable, cocky and almost counterintuitively charming figure you just want to hang around with a lot more.

Those hoping to walk away with a greater understanding of her prolific output commensurate with her success will do so empty-handed, though not without having been entertained.

She’s so utterly herself in director Bess Kargman’s film, in which she is frequently depicted giving the world a one-finger salute, that I couldn’t help finding myself turning into a fan. Go Diane!

Even if you don’t care for Warren’s tunes, this movie is likely to make you a fan.

Most surprisingly, I also came away from it hoping that she’ll eventually win an Oscar someday, and disappointed that this documentary about her seems more interested in helping her do that than it does in succeeding on its own terms.

For Oscar obsessives, the access and behind-the-scenes intrigue found in the film will make “Diane Warren: Relentless“essential viewing.

Watching Warren work is the gift Relentless gives us.

Diane Warren: Relentless is intimate in scope but offers an all-around portrait of the legendary songwriter.

Few stars really open up about wanting the Oscar so badly.

Assumes viewers will recognize the many hit pop songs and interpreters by this bio-doc subject. Her phenomenal success is despite discouragement from her mother. Old friends describe their discomfort with her family dynamics revealed from on the spectrum.