[yasr_overall_rating]
In her own words, comedienne Gilda Radner looks back and reflects on her life and career. Weaving together recently discovered audiotapes, interviews with her friends, rare home movies and diaries read by modern-day comediennes (including Amy Poehler), “Love Gilda” offers a unique window into the honest and whimsical world of a beloved performer whose greatest role was sharing her story.
Sometimes we tell our stories because we are unraveling the tragedies of our childhood. Sometimes we write them down because we overcame struggles to accomplish our dreams. And sometimes we feel compelled to search and search and search for who we are. Gilda Radner was born to a well-to-do family, had a mostly idyllic childhood, ate lots of snacks, and became famous just because. That might be a tad simplified, but seriously, with an upbeat vivacious personality, a beautiful smile, and a job that only turned into the wildly popular “Saturday Night Live,” Gilda seemed to Lady Luck herself. And yet, all that popularity and fandom came with a deep-seated fear that one is never truly loved or never truly enough.
The truths or distortions we tell ourselves are the ones we struggle with the most. We are our own worst enemy. And perhaps Gilda knew this reality better than most. As a woman in comedy, a starving bulimic, and lone lover, she came to see how hard it is to face the questions that resonate from within, why we follow the paths we do, and how we accept both the good and bad of ourselves. Through family and friends, lovers, and even Gilda’s many handwritten journals and personal photographs, this is the story of one woman’s life and also her death.
Maybe the “moral of the story” is not particularly deep or astonishing in Gilda’s memoir, ‘It’s Always Something,’ but the fact remains, anyone brave enough to let go of their fears and love their own shadows, has a story worth listening to. Do yourself the favor. Laugh at her antics, reminisce about her glory, and let her teach you a little of the importance of self-acceptance in this thoughtful film. We can always use the laughter and the hope.
Opens at the Magnolia Theatre in Dallas Friday, September 21st.
