‘I was a little girl that wanted to play with dolls…’
Hollywood has always had an uneasy relationship with child stars. Going right back to Judy Garland and beyond. If a child actor doesn’t gain a foothold quickly at the turn of adolescence then they will end up a perpetual punchline. Macaulay Culkin. Corey Feldman. You know the rest. Showbiz Kids looks at this issue from both sides of the coin. From those such as Evan Rachel Wood and Milla Jovovich who were seemingly able to break free from the child star label, and also the likes of Wil Wheaton and Mara Wilson who never really did. That’s not to say that they didn’t get their own happy ending, it just didn’t happen in Hollywood.
Showbiz Kids mixes archive footage with fascinating interviews with those mentioned above as well Jada Pinkett Smith, Henry Thomas and Cameron Boyce (whose memory this film is dedicated to). Each actor or former actor has their own story to tell, but there are common threads that run through all of them. Slimy studio executives. Morally dubious family members. Missing cash. While Hollywood is currently in the midst of some serious navel gazing around how it treats the vulnerable and the marginalised, it is clear there are still many bridges yet to cross in this area.
Director Alex Winter is perhaps best known as Bill S. Preston esquire from the Bill & Ted franchise, but behind the camera, he has carved out a niche for himself as an interesting filmmaker, able to switch between comedy and more serious fare. His docs on Napster and the deep web are also worth catching, and it is clear that documentaries are Winter’s primary passion.
Showbiz Kids is an angry film. It is an eye opening film. Mostly though, it’s entertaining, and that’s why we’re all here after all.