Female Film Critics 24/375
“Trying to be perfect is a toxic journey,” says Jane Fonda in Susan Lacy’s revealing, deeply personal documentary Jane Fonda in Five Acts, and — after hearing stories she’s told for the previous two hours — it’s impossible to disagree. Fonda’s revelatory reflections on her life as actress and activist make it clear that giving herself permission to be imperfect let her become her happiest self.
If you thought you knew Jane Fonda after decades of watching her life and art unfold in the public eye you’re in a for a surprise. Susan Lacy’s HBO documentary Jane Fonda in Five Acts takes you deeper than ever before into the Hollywood legend’s personal successes and failures, her hopes and dreams, and her true grit.
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Filmmaker Susan Lacy packs in as much information about Fonda as she can using archival footage, film and television clips, and talking-head interviews with her family, costars and friends and, of course, Jane Fonda herself. For those who are just discovering Fonda, this documentary will help them understand her place in history and perhaps help them on their journey of self-discovery.
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Curiously, although the documentary shows Jane Fonda transforming herself throughout her life, the film is structured in five chapters, mostly built around the men in her life, although the men were mostly an accompaniment to her transformations.
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“What in the world is wrong with Jane Fonda?” is the opening question of Jane Fonda in Five Acts, an extraordinarily intimate and perceptive new HBO biography. It’s a cleverly ironic way for director Susan Lacy to begin framing her portrait of the legendary actress and activist, structuring the film around extensive on camera interviews in which Fonda examines her own life story.
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