Phil Ochs: There But for Fortune Reviews

A stimulating reflection on the American countercultural protest movement examined through the prism of one of its most impassioned and underappreciated voices. Captures both Ochs' glory days and his sad and rapid decline, communicating the brilliance of his songs (he wrote hundreds, and recorded 7 albums in his short career) as well as the less savory aspects of his life. Kenneth Bowser's loving but honest documentary gives him his proper due as an important artist, without sugarcoating his troubled, and eventually self-destructive, nature.

It's a nice piece on a lesser known artist. What's here is your pretty standard documentary fare but the subject is so interesting that it keeps you going. The major flaw of the film is that it seems like a bit of a fluff piece at times. When the film begins to set the stage for Ochs' death it feels like the mental problems, alcoholism and daddy issues come suddenly from left field and are only briefly examined. I would have liked to see more examination of Phil Ochs the man as opposed to Phil Ochs and his musical output. It's a good music documentary but by the end I didn't feel like I knew much more about what really made him tick then I would have by reading wikipedia.