What Happened, Brittany Murphy?

Using random vloggers as a means to propel the narrative offsets any credibility this mediocre film gains from its few substantive interviews. Mostly, it's just two hours of people offering unqualified opinions. It'd be easier and quicker to learn about this case via a web search. Even as a true crime fan I thought this one was a waste of time.

On the plus side there was some good photography, and the music was quite good. I was never a fan but I came away liking her a bit more after seeing this. Sadly, we hear more from airheads applying their makeup whilst vlogging than we hear about Brittany herself. A wasted effort, and and not worthy of your time unless you're a rabid fan seeking confirmation that Monjack was a bad guy.

5 stars, with two removed for the use of the vloggers.

I wasn't aware that the National Enquirer was into filmmaking. The gossipy information and opinions of the various vloggers was so enlightening, not to mention their helpful makeup tips.

Brittany Murphy deserves better.

After watching both Parts 1 and 2 (roughly a total of 2 hours), I know about as much as I did before Part 1 began. Other than a lot of speculation, some by people close to Ms. Murphy, no definitive conclusions are reached.

The documentary paints a portrait of a young actress manipulated by a domineering spouse - sad, but not a new story (see anything written about Dorothy Stratton, for example). After the end of Part 2, we are left with the same nagging questions - why did Ms. Murphy and her husband die (separately) of nearly identical causes at relatively young ages?

And the documentary contains a lot of "filler content" to stretch it to nearly 2 hours. For example, clips of online video commenters - YouTubers and online "conspiracy theorists/makeup influencers" - offers no credible insight and are nothing more than rampant speculation. These folks may be legitimate and fervent fans, but they are not experts in any known field pertaining to a murder investigation. The inclusion of those video clips was completely unnecessary.

While I did learn a little more about Ms. Murphy's childhood and personal life, the documentary never answered it's own question. "What Happened, Brittany Murphy?" Answer: the documentary director doesn't know.

I didn't know much about Brittany Murphy other than remembering that when she died I thought it was incredibly tragic because she seemed like a legitimately sweet person, a good actor, and way too young. One thing that bothered me was that they twice showed texts of list of drugs and I'm not sure if they were ACTUALLY from an autopsy report or just random lists of drugs shown for sensationalism because they really ignored the possible overdose that would be all but guaranteed if they were found in her system. And the fact that they spent so much time airing random social media conspiracy "influencers" talking while doing makeup tutorials really makes me wonder how accurate the documentary is. It definitely made it feel trashy. Maybe if people were more responsible about what they baselessly say, people like Murphy wouldn't be driven to things like eating disorders, drugs, and desperation. Her last few years were quite a tragedy.

Clips of moronic YouTube buffoons speculating on her cause of death while doing makeup tutorials ruins what could have maybe been an interesting insight into BM's psyche, relationships, how she handled her own healthcare concerns, etc. It could've at least been a decent documentary if not a great one...but the inclusion of these hollow influencer wannabes robs the filmmakers and other interviewees of all credibility.