by Kassidy Hart — Billie Eilish, 19-year-old singer and songwriter, shocked the world in 2015 when her song “Ocean Eyes” went viral. R.J. Cutler’s documentary “Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” was just released last Friday on Apple TV and focuses on the teen’s rise to fame and the impact of it on her life.
Throughout the film, the audience is taken through magical opportunities Eilish has gotten, like performing at Coachella and meeting childhood celebrity crush, Justin Bieber. Yet, it also takes time to home in on the small moments, too. The film shows how Eilish and her older brother, Finneas, first began creating music in his childhood bedroom and continue to do so. It also goes through Eilish’s own vulnerabilities and how those impact her daily life.
The most surprising parts of the documentary were the ones that focused more on Eilish’s feelings and thoughts on her whole experience as a big-time celebrity. It revealed her insecurities surrounding her Tourette’s Syndrome (which I didn’t even know she had). It also showed her mom and how involved she was in her life (though, I would argue that her mom was a little TOO involved). We got a sneak peek into Eilish’s messy love life, a big part of adolescence.
Personally, I love watching celebrity documentaries because it’s a craft that reveals a rich, famous person as being human and more than just their talent. As regular citizens, there is an underlying interest in the rich and famous having problems because they have truly seemed to have everything. Yet, through these documentaries, audience members are exposed to the idea that true happiness cannot come from anything material. It comes from within, and even celebrities struggle finding it.
I was a fan of this film because, despite the singer’s age, it didn’t shy away from digging deep into who exactly Billie Eilish is. I will say, though, that Eilish is definitely not everyone’s cup of tea. She is rather vulgar in her everyday speech and a bit dark humored which is portrayed through her style of dress and music. This is at the fault of the film, though, but rather the critical critique of the actress’ developed personality.
For this, I would advise those who don’t truly like her against watching the film. There is a irony in this warning, as Eilish has actually been known to promote good behavior and staying off of drugs in her early songs, like “Xanny”.
I would suggest those who do love her — or at least bob their head comfortably to her music’s beat in the car — take the two and a half hours out of their lives to watch the life of the young celebrity. It’s fascinating to learn more about her as a person, especially in this crucial moment of her life, and helps with adjusting assumptions of her that may have been initially based on her fashion taste.
As a growing ‘Avocado’, ‘Eyelash’, or ‘Pirate’ (the three names her fan-based is currently deciding between), I thoroughly enjoyed the documentary.
I give the film a 3.5/4 stars.
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