Britney Spears: Docu-Disappointment

I was quite anxious to watch the Britney Spears documentary on MTV last night.  I sat in the living room with Moses at my feet and a warm mug of pumpkin spice flavored soy milk at my side.  I turned out the lights and anticipated an honest, open, and revealing television experience.  What I got instead was a lot of behind the scenes footage of her prepping for her upcoming album sprinkled with halfhearted insights and refreshingly real moments.  With the credits closing, my mug was empty and Moses had leapt off of my feet and I was left feeling happy with what I had seen, yet I yearned for something more than the mostly fluff appointment hopping that I had witnessed.

As I’ve stated, the documentary mostly dealt with the typical process of creating an album and them promoting it through interviews, music videos, photo shoots, etc.  We are also given a glimpse of what it’s like between music video takes and the stress she endures just to go shopping.  In between these clips, Britney is interviewed about the last few years of her life.  In different settings and wardrobes, Britney talks “openly” about some of the tough times she’s endured, such as the head shaving and the breakups with Justin Timberlake and Kevin Federline.  This is where I started to have a problem with the documentary.  In the beginning, it states that no topic was off limit and no question was unanswered.  This was true, yet the answers were, in my humble opinion, largely insufficient. 

While I was pleasantly surprised that she opened up about the breakup with Justin and Kevin, she didn’t go into details.  She recalls that she felt lost and alone, but then again, who doesn’t after they’ve been through a breakup? I will give it to her though, some people handle things worse than others and the fact that she is always under a lens probably magnified any kind of emotion she was feeling.  She says that Justin was such a part of her image that when he was gone, she didn’t know what to do.  She said that breaking up with Kevin was harder because she had children with him and she didn’t know what to do.  While I do respect her for opening up and examining her behavior after the breakups, I don’t think she revealed anything that we couldn’t have already guessed. 

And I think the parts where the documentary became contradicting was when she was asked about the tough and obscure issues, such as the head shaving and the drug allegations.  The whole point of the film was to clear up the rumors and the false stories that had been printed about her, yet she never clarified anything.  Sure, I wanted to know about the head shaving but I also wanted to know about the partying and the drug rumors and the rehab.  What was the rehab about?  What about those psychiatric problems that she was allegedly having? 

She never addressed anything.  She glossed over the drugs by conveying that people thought she was doing drugs because of her behavior.  She never admitted or denied that it was true.  And as for the head shaving, she said it was an act of rebellion and added that people shave their heads all the time.  Let me clarify that statement.  Guys shave their heads all the time and mostly for aesthetic reasons and ease of maintenance, not so much out of rebellion.  Plus, she said she never explained it ‘cause she never thought it was anyone’s business.  I’m just not buying it.  If anything, it’s most likely a half-truth because it would probably take more than a little rebellious streak for her to liberate her scalp like that, in public no less.

There have also been reports about a rift between Britney and her mother that she didn’t clear up.  In fact, her mother was never once mentioned and she was conspicuously absent throughout the entire presentation.  Someone who was present a lot was her father, which until the documentary, I didn’t know very much about.  Overall, she seems to be a good intentioned guy, albeit irritating at times. 

And while she fumbled through trying to clear her name during the sit down parts, I think she actually did a much better job of anchoring herself to humanity when she was with her family, in between photo shoots or backstage, messing around and just being herself.  It was the moments when she was impersonating her father or holding her children on Halloween that really stripped away all of those facades the tabloids placed on her, all the images her record company has given her, all the artificial superstar glitter that creates a disconnect between the pop star and the person.  And when she was laughing like a dork and talking about not being understood, when she was allowed to really open up, she did and I could see it and I think it really resonated with me and reminded me, and hopefully everyone else, that she is just a person, that she laughs and cries and goes through hard times like anyone else.  Her coping mechanisms are just different and maybe not the best and unfortunately for her, it’s all caught on camera.  I’m sure no one would want what we do to heal to be filmed or exposed.  And usually it’s not.  We deal in private.  She doesn’t get that luxury. 

In the end, I think the documentary was simply more press for her album.  I don’t know if she honestly intended to set the record straight or if she just used the film as a vehicle for promotion but either way I think there was some good that came out of it and even if she didn’t truly answer all the questions, say all the things she needed or wanted to say, I think she came out in a positive light. 

She mentioned that she didn’t like the concept of people saying she was making a comeback.  She said she never left and in some ways, she hasn’t.  She’s been in the public eye quite a bit but for all the wrong reasons.  I think most people are calling this a comeback because Britney was obviously damaged a great deal for a great amount of time.  Damaged by what or who is still mostly unknown, despite the documentary, but we all know she was messed up.  And now she seems to be getting her life and her career back on track and that, Ms. Britney, is a comeback.  And don’t get me wrong, I’m glad to see it happen.  She’s always been a guilty pleasure to me and think what you want about her, there’s no denying her success or appeal.  When Blackout came out, I was hoping she was finally back to the old Britney that girls wanted to befriend and boys wanted to bed.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.  I hope this time is different.  During the live countdown to the documentary, was I the only one who thought Britney was either really scared or really uninterested in being there?  She was quite stiff and gave one-word answers to Damien’s questions.  Maybe it’s just the jitters.  She hasn’t made very many public appearances in a long time and perhaps she was just rusty.  I hope so, for her sake, this is the case. 

It seems she is being hyped even more than during the release of Blackout and I just hope people aren’t pushing her too hard or too fast.  As much as she claims to love working and love being busy, there is such a thing as leaping blindly into a situation and I just hope she isn’t doing that now.  I hope she is one hundred percent ready to get back on track and do what she loves.