150 Word Reviews: 'Grey Gardens' (1976)
American royalty
This is an example of a classic documentary that deserves its reputation. Grey Gardens follows Big and Little Edie Bouvier Beale, a mother and daughter who live in squalor in an upscale Long Island beach community. They are related to fabulous Jackie Onassis, the remarried widow of assassinated President John F. Kennedy.
Directed by Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Ellen Hovde, and Muffie Meyer, Grey Gardens is an immersive, meandering, at times uncomfortable and charming visit with two eccentrics who exist in a twilight where past resentments and dreams slow dance with the present. Bescarved Little Edie would be a tragic character were she not so defiant and full of life. The documentarians aren’t judgmental and capture intimate scenes of life on an estate infested with cats and raccoons. Grey Gardens is best watched as if the mother and daughter are immortal sorceresses who are still puttering around their crumbling mansion.
It's also a cautionary tale to those of us growing old and living alone. If you're aging, keep your family and friends close.