The Punk Singer (2013) on Netflix
NR20131h 20mDocumentaryMusic
Kathleen Hanna fronts the punk band Bikini Kill and is a central figure in riot grrrl. Interviews, archival footage and live performances follow her life as a singer, zine writer and activist.
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- Netflix4.1/5
- IMDb7.4/103,316 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes91%
Trailer
Plot summary
Filmed on and off over a year, the documentary mixes interviews with archival footage and live performances to tell the story of Kathleen Hanna, who fronted the punk band Bikini Kill and became a central figure in riot grrrl. Bandmates, fellow musicians and writers describe her childhood, her start in spoken word poetry, the zines she published and the bands she played in, among them the dance-punk group Le Tigre. Her solo work as Julie Ruin, her feminist activism and the phrase she coined for Kurt Cobain are all part of the account, along with her marriage to Adam Horovitz. The film takes its title from a Julie Ruin song.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Punk Singer (2013)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Kathleen Hanna told director Sini Anderson not to feature Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth, Ian MacKaye of Fugazi or Calvin Johnson of Beat Happening, saying she wanted women to be the experts rather than have male experts make her story legitimate.
- The Punk Singer was the first public announcement of Kathleen Hanna's battle with Lyme disease; she had been struggling with symptoms since 2005 without knowing the cause and told her Le Tigre bandmates she had written all she ever intended to write.
- Bikini Kill's Tobi Vail, whom Kathleen Hanna wanted interviewed, declined to take part in order to keep her privacy and instead appears in archival footage talking about Hanna and the punk scene.
- Adam Horovitz of the Beastie Boys, Kathleen Hanna's husband, appears in the documentary as a strong, steadying supporter of his wife and filmed one of its more troubling scenes himself.
