Janis: Little Girl Blue
An intimate archival portrait follows Janis Joplin from blues-loving outsider to electrifying rock legend while preserving the vulnerability behind her fame.
Overview
A deep dive into the life of a rock legend, exploring the highs and lows of fame.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- None
- reflective
- poignant
- melancholic
- date night indoors
- classic rock listening session
What critics said
Critics broadly found the documentary respectful, insightful, and inquisitive without reducing Janis Joplin to hagiography.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Janis Joplin's letters to friends, family, and collaborators organize the account, read aloud by Cat Power.
The film traces Joplin's rise as a rock icon while using intimate correspondence and testimony to reveal the person behind the image.
Archive footage and accounts from collaborators follow Joplin's evolution from aspiring musician to international star.
Joplin's career is situated within 1960s rock, blues, Woodstock, recording sessions, and the wider counterculture.
Films like Janis: Little Girl Blue, and why
Amy
music documentary portrait of a charismatic, troubled rock performer built from archival material and personal testimony
What Happened, Miss Simone?
intimate archival biography of a groundbreaking female musician shaped by fame, vulnerability, and creative legacy
The Rolling Stones: Gimme Shelter
archival rock documentary combining concert footage, personal history, and the mythology of music stardom
Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck
reflective musician biography focused on artistic evolution, public image, and tragic personal decline
Movie Details
- Director
- Amy J. Berg
- Release Date
- 2015-09-09
- Runtime
- 106 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (167)
Cast
- Janis Joplin
- Cat Power
- D. A. Pennebaker
- Dick Cavett
- Peter Albin
- Karleen Bennett
- Laura Joplin
- Michael Joplin
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Janis: Little Girl Blue about?
- An intimate archival portrait follows Janis Joplin from blues-loving outsider to electrifying rock legend while preserving the vulnerability behind her fame.
- What is Janis: Little Girl Blue like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Janis: Little Girl Blue as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Janis: Little Girl Blue violent?
- No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Janis: Little Girl Blue.
- What did critics think of Janis: Little Girl Blue?
- Critics broadly found the documentary respectful, insightful, and inquisitive without reducing Janis Joplin to hagiography.
- Which films are like Janis: Little Girl Blue?
- Films with a similar feel include Amy, What Happened, Miss Simone?, The Rolling Stones: Gimme Shelter, and Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck.
- How long is Janis: Little Girl Blue?
- Janis: Little Girl Blue runs 106 minutes.
- Where can I watch Janis: Little Girl Blue?
- In United States, Janis: Little Girl Blue streams on Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
