Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold
- 2017
- 1h 34m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
3.1K
YOUR RATING
Literary icon Joan Didion reflects on her remarkable career and personal struggles in this intimate documentary directed by her nephew, Griffin Dunne.Literary icon Joan Didion reflects on her remarkable career and personal struggles in this intimate documentary directed by her nephew, Griffin Dunne.Literary icon Joan Didion reflects on her remarkable career and personal struggles in this intimate documentary directed by her nephew, Griffin Dunne.
- Awards
- 4 nominations
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe featured instrumental song is called Sandusky by Uncle Tupelo.
- ConnectionsFeatures Way Down East (1920)
- SoundtracksFive To One
Written by John Densmore, Jim Morrison, Robby Krieger & Ray Manzarek
Performed by The Doors
Courtesy of Elektra Entertainment by arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV licensing
Featured review
Joan Didion's incredible ride.
I'm usually cautious around docs with a nepotistic bent to them from which you learn little in what basically turns out to be a valentine on the subject. Writer Director Nora Ephron's son did a hollow one on his mom while photog Annie Liebovitz's sister offered up a cringing love letter to her in American Masters. Maria Riva, daughter of Marlene Dietrich on the other hand has given a warts an all interview (available on You Tube) that cooked from start to finish that is well worth the watch for many reasons.
In Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold, her nephew actor Griffin Dunne may have wanted to approach the 80 plus year old Didion gingerly but the feisty 75 pounder was not about to have it showing the same determination in getting the story right as she did nearly half a century ago chronicling the American scene, especially the West Coast. With an incredibly keen sense of observation she displayed a grasp of an era with a clarity and incite while fellow contemporaries such as Thompson, Mailer and Breslin relied on hyperbole and slap happy verbosity.
Brought up on gloom, Donner Party bed time stories, it never seemed to be far from the stoic Didion, questioning what love was regarding her author husband that she partnered with professionally as well. Her adopted daughter found her remote. It is perhaps this distance that made her a superb reporter, memoirist. Always observing, never immersing. When spouse and daughter pass her true love kicks in and she writes a masterpiece around the husband, a play around the daughter.
Director Dunne has superior entry and makes the most of old newsreels along with an avalanche of family photos to give the doc a fine look including impressive visual backdrops, such as snow draped NYC, to her words. We find out Warren Beatty had the hots for her but he does step gently around her emaciated ( anorexia?) look as well obvious MS symptoms. But when queried about a scene 50 years earlier of witnessing a 5 year old on LSD she bluntly calls it "gold." Classic JD, honest and objective to the core. A rare quality to be found in today's world of blatantly bias journalism.
In Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold, her nephew actor Griffin Dunne may have wanted to approach the 80 plus year old Didion gingerly but the feisty 75 pounder was not about to have it showing the same determination in getting the story right as she did nearly half a century ago chronicling the American scene, especially the West Coast. With an incredibly keen sense of observation she displayed a grasp of an era with a clarity and incite while fellow contemporaries such as Thompson, Mailer and Breslin relied on hyperbole and slap happy verbosity.
Brought up on gloom, Donner Party bed time stories, it never seemed to be far from the stoic Didion, questioning what love was regarding her author husband that she partnered with professionally as well. Her adopted daughter found her remote. It is perhaps this distance that made her a superb reporter, memoirist. Always observing, never immersing. When spouse and daughter pass her true love kicks in and she writes a masterpiece around the husband, a play around the daughter.
Director Dunne has superior entry and makes the most of old newsreels along with an avalanche of family photos to give the doc a fine look including impressive visual backdrops, such as snow draped NYC, to her words. We find out Warren Beatty had the hots for her but he does step gently around her emaciated ( anorexia?) look as well obvious MS symptoms. But when queried about a scene 50 years earlier of witnessing a 5 year old on LSD she bluntly calls it "gold." Classic JD, honest and objective to the core. A rare quality to be found in today's world of blatantly bias journalism.
helpful•70
- st-shot
- Jan 11, 2021
- How long is Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Official site
- Language
- Also known as
- Joan Didion: Trung Tâm Sẽ Tan Vỡ
- Filming locations
- Production company
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime1 hour 34 minutes
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content
Top Gap
By what name was Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold (2017) officially released in Canada in English?
Answer