Unless you are or were a hard-core fan of Andy Warhol, you (like most of us) probably have a preconceived notion of who Warhol was. To most people, he was the weird looking guy with the bad wig who painted a bunch of Campbell soup cans. This documentary blows the lid off of any and most perceptions people had of Warhol.
I think for the most part Warhol was his own creation of who he wanted the world to think he was, i.e., eccentric, reclusive, lonely, fly-on-the-wall persona who created an almost completely new genre of modern art. He would used this self-creation to at once achieve what he most wanted (wealth and fame) while simultaneously retreating from the spotlight when it suited his purpose.
This doc peels all of the layers off of the facade. What we see is a man who was at times a social butterfly, one who craved affection just like any other person, one who fell in love and had his heart broken when the love affairs dissolved and partook in everyday activities just like the common man.
To me, two of the most startling things I found out were that Warhol was on 'The Love Boat' and he fell off of the back of a snowmobile. I was literally gob smacked.
As an added bonus, this movie is a must see for anyone who wants to know what NYC was like before, during and after the Aids epidemic. It's devastation is revisited in gut-wrenching fashion.
I highly recommend this series if you have even a passing interest in art and the life of one of the greatest modern painters of a generation.
