There’s a disturbingly poignant interlude in this vibrant examination of the singer’s short life, when Janis Joplin returns to her home town of Port Arthur, Texas, to attend a 10-year high-school class reunion. Having suffered many hurts in her youth as a bullied outsider, the now hugely successful star seems set for a triumphant homecoming. Yet filmed interviews find her awkward and uncertain, still prey to the uncertainties of failing to fit in.
It’s a theme that runs throughout Amy J Berg’s empathetic documentary; the dichotomy of a woman who gave the male rock’n’roll establishment a punchy run for their money (she could drink, sing and party most of them under the table) but who still retained the “little girl” fears flagged up in the title.
A feast of archive footage and audio recordings takes us on an engrossing journey from folk clubs to rock festival stages, while friends and relatives remember the force of nature that was Joplin with a song between her teeth.
