Betty Blowtorch: And Her Amazing True Life Adventures (2003)
For two years, filmmaker and music video director Anthony Scarpa followed the all-girl punk rock band Betty Blowtorch, documenting their ferocious sound and dangerously low-tech pyrotechnic shows, unaware of the turmoil and tragedy that he will ultimately capture. From their near rise to the top of the major labels, to their ultimate sad end, this critically-acclaimed rock n roll tragedy features the band Betty Blowtorch, as well as other rockers such as Duff McKagan (Guns N Roses, Velvet Revolver), Vanilla Ice, Dez Cadena (Black Flag), Jennifer Finch (L7), Kevin Baldes (LiT), and many others.
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Sorry, this movie sucks
Don't listen to the negative reviews
I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.
One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.
I am a huge fan of the Los Angeles music scene so I was aware of Betty Blowtorch, but I never really knew the story behind the band. The filmmakers did a great job of gathering archive materials, interviews and rare live performances from which they compiled a pretty compelling and dramatic rock and roll movie. The film covers the band from start to tragic finish. Some of the early footage covering the band's seemingly accidental label signing (they got signed to EMI early on when they were called Butt Trumpet) is priceless as the main players from that era pulls no punches when it comes to recalling their own versions of who was responsible for the eventual break up of Butt Trumpet. It was cool to see that the girls carried on and formed Betty Blowtorch, with Bianca stepping up to take lead vocals. I often thought of the band as a novelty act with the tattoos and fireworks, but the film captures some pretty intense performances that should make some people take a second listen. There is a good mix of humor and drama, plus some surprise footage with Vanilla Ice that gave me new respect for him. Some moments in the film explored some heavy issues regarding Bianca's past, but seeing her on the screen looking happy and beautiful - knowing she made it through some stuff that most don't survive, was inspiring. However, in the end, we are shown just how fragile we really are.