CNN
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The word “intimate” is often used when describing celebrity documentaries, and it certainly applies to “Pamela, Love Story.” This shows Pamela Anderson, at one point, lounging in the bathtub with a portion of his diary read aloud as narration. The result is a humanized look of a woman, often reduced to cartoon caricatures, which at times feels too much like a licensed product.
Among other things, Anderson’s son Brandon Thomas Lee, produced by director Ryan White (his biographical documentary includes: “Ask Dr. Ruth” and “Selena”) had access to her collection of home movies as well as her diary. This included a scene of Anderson having sex with her then-husband and drummer Tommy Lee, who was stolen and released worldwide.
Anderson, now 55, talks about that interlude, about the invasiveness of making private material look like that and exploiting it, and what she clearly sees as the reopening of those wounds in Hulu’s limited series. I’m here. “Pam & Tommy” dramatization of those events.
Anderson’s account did little to detract from that Emmy-nominated production, in fact, and was very sympathetic in portraying the hurt she felt and the way the media treated her. , clips of late-night comics presented here utilizing Anderson as a punchline, or clips of interviewers Matt Lauer and Larry King asking her about her breasts, would undermine the Hulu version. I support it as much as
“Pamela” hangs out in the small British Columbia town she grew up in before she was spotted at a football game, revealing Anderson let her guard down from the start as she appears to be wearing no makeup. (fans have seen her appear on camera on the scoreboard) and launched her on the Playboy pages as a model.
As Anderson says, during that time she regained her sexuality and experienced abuse on multiple occasions as a child.
International stardom continued with “Baywatch,” and it’s funny to hear Anderson reminisce not only about all the celebrities he dated during that stretch, but the whole “running on the beach in slow motion” image. Home Improvement” and Anderson’s Recent allegations in her memoir Flashed to Tim Allen, the star the comic is in denial about.)
The resentment of that “blonde bombshell” status is well documented here.
The frenzied feeding over the sex tapes “solidified her cartoon image,” recalled Anderson, adding, “At that point, I knew my career was over.”
“Pamela” handles all of that very well, but much of the rest plays like a Hallmark card version of Anderson’s story, from the brooding, saccharine music to interviews with his sons. increase. Especially enlightening.
The last part of the documentary also feels a little scattered, stepping into an Anderson-like area animal rights activism Through PETA, she Defending WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange and finally she Broadway debut in “Chicago”.
At best, “Pamela, Love Story” strips away what, in hindsight, seems to be the misogynistic media coverage obsessed with her looks and relationships, and considers the person behind it all. . Help Anderson claim ownership over her story.
In that moment, ‘Pamela’ might work as a love story, but it does a little poorly as a documentary.
“Pamela, a Love Story” premieres on Netflix on January 31st.
