Spector is a 4-part documentary television series about the legendary music producer Phil Spector.
The documentary series is compelling viewing. With his days as the top music producer in the world long past, it is easy to simply think of the man as a psychotic individual with a penchant for guns that ultimately caught up with him, when he was convicted for the murder of actress Lana Clarkson in 2009. With his timeless music still resonating all these years since, it may be almost impossible to rationalise these two personas that Spector possessed. However, the documentary series does a good job in bringing the many gaps in the story of Phil Spector.
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A key event in Spector’s life was the suicide of his father when he was a teenager. That event coupled with the unhealthy dominance of his mother and sister led him to deal with his fear of abandonment and rejection issues with a need for absolute control. His need for control was manifested in his music – he was a dictator in the recording studio and at a very young age, established his own record label, which made him millions very quickly. The wealth he attained facilitated his quirks and disturbing needs and his fame helped him to get away with anti-social behaviour.
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The documentary series also does a good job in fleshing out the murder victim Lana Clarkson. In the media coverage of the murder trial, Clarkson was often marginalised and reduced to a statistic. Kudos to the makers of this series for not trivialising the tremendous loss of Clarkson’s death, shorn of her unfortunate association with Spector’s celebrity status. For that alone perhaps, this series is worth checking out as that kind of sensitivity is all too rare in American culture, one that is obsessed with celebrity. Highly recommended.
Watch now on Showtime.
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