Music Biopic Doc Film ‘Little Richard: I Am Everything’ Official Trailer
by Alex Billington
March 15, 2023
Source: YouTube
“He was very, very good at liberating other people, he was not good at liberating himself.” Magnolia Pics has revealed an official trailer for a documentary film titled Little Richard: I Am Everything, the latest from acclaimed filmmaker Lisa Cortes; and it’s executive produced by fellow filmmaker Dee Rees. The film premiered on opening night at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. It’s opening in limited theaters starting in April. Little Richard: I Am Everything tells the story of the Black queer origins of rock n’ roll, exploding the whitewashed canon of American pop music to reveal the innovator – the originator – Richard Penniman. Sundance adds this tidbit: “Cortés updates the canon with a treasure trove of rarely seen archival footage of Penniman. Among the gems are scenes with his Black and queer predecessors and contemporaries, like Sister Rosetta Tharpe: the mother of rock ’n’ roll who gave 14-year-old Penniman his first break.” The biopic doc also features Mick Jagger, Billy Porter, John Waters, Tom Jones, and plenty others. This looks like a comprehensive film, honest about the good & bad sides of Richard. Worth a watch.
Here’s the full trailer (+ poster) for Lisa Cortes’ doc Little Richard: I Am Everything, from YouTube:
Tells the story of the Black queer origins of rock n’ roll, exploding the whitewashed canon of American pop music to reveal the innovator – the originator – Richard Penniman. Through a wealth of archive and performance that brings us into Richard’s complicated inner world, the film unspools the icon’s life story with all its switchbacks and contradictions. In interviews with family, musicians, and cutting-edge Black and queer scholars, the film reveals how Richard created an art form for ultimate self-expression, yet what he gave to the world he was never able to give to himself. Throughout his life, Richard careened like a shiny cracked pinball between God, sex and rock n’ roll. The world tried to put him in a box, but Richard was an omni being who contained multitudes – he was unabashedly everything. The film is directed by American doc filmmaker Lisa Cortes, of the films The Remix: Hip Hop X Fashion and All In: The Fight for Democracy previously. Produced by Robert Friedman, Lisa Cortés, Liz Yale Marsh, and Caryn Capotosto. This initially premiered at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Magnolia will debut the doc in select US theaters on April 11th, 2023, then also on VOD starting April 21st. Visit the film’s official site.
