TLDR: Nothing to see here, folks, in this terrible, clickbait "doc". It tells less than what you can find online and there is no big revelation here. Just photo after photo of skeletal Brittany.
I have always respected HBO docs, but this is a real tabloid "doc" (the Max part?). The only redeeming factor is that it interviews many of those close to her (except the mother). But there are way too many YouTube floggers to count and they are all speculation and promoting baseless conspiracy theories, and talking about her death while doing makeup tutorials, which is the worst bad taste I can think of.
Not to mention the inclusion of that parasite, Perez Hilton. He is very complicit in her demise, and has had a negative effect on other celebs as well. He seems to be contrite and that could be a whole other doc but this one doesn't delve into his so-called regrets at all. His justifications are just tasteless.
The ONE question the doc never, ever asks is why her mother didn't do something, get her to a doctor, protect her daughter? How can a crush on a con man trump the welfare of your only child? She was living in the house the whole time this developed. Why the doc doesn't investigate this is bizarre. They are hyper focused on the husband's role. I guess easier to speculate about the dead than the living for the filmmakers. Of course Simon, the husband, picked his marks well. Two naive women at a weak time in their lives who were dying for a strong man to protect them and take charge. But that doesn't excuse the mother or anyone else who didn't at least call the city and ask for a welfare check. Esp when she was pretty much a prisoner. How can you call those people "friends"? I will think twice before putting money into their pockets anytime soon.
So strange that the coroners they interview gloss over the drugs of abuse in her, and her husband's, toxicology reports. 2 kinds of Vicodin (hydrocodone, a popular opiate), amphetamines, benzos, and much more, saying that they were "prescription". Yeah, no one ever abused or OD'd from those... Just Vicodin and benzos are enough to stop you breathing; it's why drs can't prescribe both now in most states. Perhaps there weren't enough of these drugs for cause of death but her Wiki says that they were definitely a factor. Yet the doc omits this important information, so they can clickbait viewers to keep watching. Even after the investigator said it appeared that the couple had been doctor shopping and using an alias for Brittany so she could evade detection. Inexcusable reporting.
It never fails to amaze me how time after time, death after death, no one does anything about obviously sick or troubled celebs. The sad thing is that it's often the people closest to them (Amy Winehouse's father, etc) who are culpable. But I've seen it close up. People are so enamored with a celeb that, you know, anything is excused and they are given more of whatever is killing them. Or there is too much money to be made to take any action. Even at the highest levels of a huge record label producer or film producers and directors. It's the sad truth of the music and film biz since their inception, over 100yrs now.
One thing that is striking, and I don't trust the "doc", but this seems to be so, is that there was no big usual investigation into Brittany's death, yet there was into the husband's, Simon. Police are usually extremely suspicious of spouses, and bring them in for questioning or even arrest them, but none of that here. What made the con man, n'er do well husband worthy of a serious investigation and talented, famous Brittany not? There are many of these questions the film might have tried to answer, but doesn't.
I have always respected HBO docs, but this is a real tabloid "doc" (the Max part?). The only redeeming factor is that it interviews many of those close to her (except the mother). But there are way too many YouTube floggers to count and they are all speculation and promoting baseless conspiracy theories, and talking about her death while doing makeup tutorials, which is the worst bad taste I can think of.
Not to mention the inclusion of that parasite, Perez Hilton. He is very complicit in her demise, and has had a negative effect on other celebs as well. He seems to be contrite and that could be a whole other doc but this one doesn't delve into his so-called regrets at all. His justifications are just tasteless.
The ONE question the doc never, ever asks is why her mother didn't do something, get her to a doctor, protect her daughter? How can a crush on a con man trump the welfare of your only child? She was living in the house the whole time this developed. Why the doc doesn't investigate this is bizarre. They are hyper focused on the husband's role. I guess easier to speculate about the dead than the living for the filmmakers. Of course Simon, the husband, picked his marks well. Two naive women at a weak time in their lives who were dying for a strong man to protect them and take charge. But that doesn't excuse the mother or anyone else who didn't at least call the city and ask for a welfare check. Esp when she was pretty much a prisoner. How can you call those people "friends"? I will think twice before putting money into their pockets anytime soon.
So strange that the coroners they interview gloss over the drugs of abuse in her, and her husband's, toxicology reports. 2 kinds of Vicodin (hydrocodone, a popular opiate), amphetamines, benzos, and much more, saying that they were "prescription". Yeah, no one ever abused or OD'd from those... Just Vicodin and benzos are enough to stop you breathing; it's why drs can't prescribe both now in most states. Perhaps there weren't enough of these drugs for cause of death but her Wiki says that they were definitely a factor. Yet the doc omits this important information, so they can clickbait viewers to keep watching. Even after the investigator said it appeared that the couple had been doctor shopping and using an alias for Brittany so she could evade detection. Inexcusable reporting.
It never fails to amaze me how time after time, death after death, no one does anything about obviously sick or troubled celebs. The sad thing is that it's often the people closest to them (Amy Winehouse's father, etc) who are culpable. But I've seen it close up. People are so enamored with a celeb that, you know, anything is excused and they are given more of whatever is killing them. Or there is too much money to be made to take any action. Even at the highest levels of a huge record label producer or film producers and directors. It's the sad truth of the music and film biz since their inception, over 100yrs now.
One thing that is striking, and I don't trust the "doc", but this seems to be so, is that there was no big usual investigation into Brittany's death, yet there was into the husband's, Simon. Police are usually extremely suspicious of spouses, and bring them in for questioning or even arrest them, but none of that here. What made the con man, n'er do well husband worthy of a serious investigation and talented, famous Brittany not? There are many of these questions the film might have tried to answer, but doesn't.