Interestingly, I happened to watch two biopics in succession on two wildly divergent personalities: one a respected and reserved noted Vanity Fair magazine contributor and popular crime novelist Dominick Dunne and the other a flamboyant, outgoing celebrity promoter and producer Allan Carr ("The Fabulous Allan Carr." If you have an Amazon Prime subscription, I would highly recommend watching them both in succession as well - the two films are fascinating and enlightening.
However, with the many differences in backgrounds and personalities of Dominick and Allan, they both shared (and had in spades) one major characteristic: a love of all things celebrity. (You will have to read my review of "The Fabulous Allan Carr" to get my insight on Mr. Carr.)
Back to this excellent biopic, I began my love affair with Dominick Dunne (as a college student from afar) when I got my first subscription to Vanity Fair magazine. I wish I could recall the first article I read by him.
Coincidentally, I am also a huge fan of his son Griffin after enjoying his performances years ago in "An American Werewolf in London" and "After Hours" and for many years did not know they were even related. I am highly anticipating (and have pre-ordered on Amazon) Griffin's memoir "The Friday Afternoon Club" which is to be released on June 11, 2024.
Back to Dominick, as an ardent literary fan (and English and Literature Minor), I found his writing style and content to be both riveting and entertaining, and this documentary exceeded my expectations. I should also mention that I have several of his novels and especially treasure his autobio "The Way We Lived Then." As in that novel, his self-awareness and self-reflection in this film I found to be both touching and sad. I loved him for his candid openness, and his outspoken quest for justice was for me understandable and much appreciated. Had I lost a child (or any loved one for that matter) to domestic violence or violence of any kind, it would spark a relentless fire in me as well. His murdered daughter Dominique exhibited beauty, wit and promise in her performance in "Poltergeist" - what an unbelievably senseless loss.
Sadly, this documentary was Mr. Dunne's personal swan song as well and was made about a year before he passed I believe. He had much more to give as he and others ironically noted in this film. He even said he didn't feel he had written his best novel yet.
If you are a fan and as entranced as I am by Mr. Dunne and his writings, I highly recommend you watch this and also the above-noted biopic on Mr. Carr. I hope they are both resting in peace with their beloved families and friends. God bless.
