The Terry Kath Experience (2016) User Reviews

Amazing Talent

[TimMath-545-333580 · 8/10 · 19 December 2018]

This movie more than does justice to Terry Kath, an artist whose voice and guitar jumped out at me on the early Chicago albums. I knew how good he truly was when I heard the band's work after Kath's death, and clearly part of the soul and vibe of the band had left as well. Jimi Hendrix once said that Kath was a better guitarist than he was-that speaks volumes. But, as with so many great rockers, talent came with recklessness. Kath wore it on his face like Jim Morrison. Considering Chicago's decades of popularity, I am surprised at how underrated this man still is. This loving portrait by a daughter who never knew him is well deserved.

Terry Kath The CTA experience

[packerhof · 9/10 · 18 December 2019]

Unfortunately, the loss of Terry Kath at such a young age left so many undiscovered pinnacles in the music world, as well as his interpersonal life as well. This film does great justice to both. It's a must see film.

Well done

[absolutemellow-12402 · 9/10 · 19 July 2021]

I think the reviewers before me missed the point; this section is meant for reviewing the documentary, not Terry Kath or the band Chicago.

Michelle Kath Sinclair did an excellent job of sharing the story of her father through the 8mm films her Dad recorded during his short life. Sinclair also assembled a wide range of his family and friends to interview for this short yet informative biography.

I enjoyed how she let those who knew him well speak so candidly without interrupting them with nonsense questions. None of the interviews appeared to be edited; the jaw dropping stories are captivating.

Thank you Michelle. I now feel I knew Terry as an old friend.

Good Documantary on a Great Guitar Player

[jburtonprod-802-759029 · 8/10 · 25 March 2020]

Growing up, Terry Kath was one of my favorite guitar players even though he was trapped in the cheese factory band, Chicago. This documentary shows how good he really was and how good Chicago was before they became the scourge of every high school dance. (If I could've made 'Color My World' a physical being I would've strangled it to death with my bare hands.) Anyway it's a good doc on a great guitar player, with nice memories shared by family and friends. It's a fun watch.

Much better than the More Than Ever Chicago doc

[Helpfan65 · 8/10 · 7 January 2021]

Insightful film, very telling that Peter Cetera and James Guercio appeared in this film and not in the Chicago documentary Now More Than Ever

8/10 ... 10 stars for Kath's talent with a guitar

[drain-457-831790 · 8/10 · 26 June 2018]

Minus two stars for his gun safety awareness which ultimately cost him his life.

I cannot believe the times throughout this documentary Terry Kath was reckless with guns. Firing a shot into the air before a concert at the ranch? Someone mentioning during an interview he would draw a gun on them ... pretending. Or his constant posing in front of the mirror "you looking at me"?

I love Terry's voice and guitar playing, but he was a walking time bomb with his recklessness. That final click for the bullet being in the chamber could have easily been someone else.

Hendrix Missed Most of Terry's playing

[MortSahlFan · 8/10 · 8 May 2022]

First off, I don't need Jimi's approval -- any musician knows how great Terry was. "Introduction" is quite the introduction.

I'm glad his daughter made this. I'm surprised it needed to be crowdfunded - doesn't she have millions? Why not keep more of the pie? I noticed her husband doing the narrating, saving money.

Cetera has never done anything related to Chicago on video, but he did do this for Michelle and Terry Kath. I'm so happy, and wish there were more excerpts of him. Too bad they didn't play another interview, since they have the archives (we don't).

Finding the guitar took a lot of time, and it didn't matter to me. This was only 75 minutes long - I would have used more of the cutting room interviews.

In high school, I'd listen to Chicago, and then my friend told me what happened to Terry, and it saddens me to this day. I cried for the first time from a song, "Oh, Thank You Great Spirit" - one of my favorite songs ever. I'd tell fans to start with the first album, and go chronologically. Lots of concerts available for traders/collectors who can hopefully upload them for the world. I try to do my part.. I've gotten back into Chicago, can't stop watching this documentary. Three times in the last two weeks. And the Chicago documentary, which got a ton of heat from the journalistic community, HuffPo, Danny Seraphine, Peter Cetera who called it a "crockumentary". I wish the ex-Chicago members made a documentary.

I would also like to know more Terry Kath. I'd like to see archives -- interviews in print, audio, video.. Someone should write a book.

BAD documenting about a great subject

[mmwilde · 5/10 · 12 November 2022]

I really enjoyed this doc when it was actually covering Terry Kath, even though I could see that the director, because she was his daughter who never really knew him, left out tons of exploration into his personality.

But what really got to me was, after I watched it, I did five minutes of research and discovered a HUGE omission. The movie asserts that Terry met amd courted his wife Camelia, writing her constantly for a year before they got together. This is represented in the doc as a fairy-tale romance. But Terry was married in 1970 and divorced in 1975, making the story of this approximately1974-1978 relationship, as well as the story of Terry Kath, much more complicated.

This is an amateurishly done doc, with a thin sub-plot of searching for a long-lost guitar (spoiler: grandpa and his wife had it in the closet keeping it for his daughter all along, raising questions as to just how interested she could have been in her father's life until she was somehow motivated to make this film).

It is great to see bandmates and Joe Walsh talking about Terry, but I have a sneaking suspision that some great nuanced material was omitted to fit a limited narrative.