Caffeinated Clint
By Clint Morris
If you felt you didn’t quite get to know the man as well as you’d hoped to in the umpteen years that “The Osbournes” ran for – yes that’s sarcasm; you likely know just how many times a day Ozzy goes to the loo after that small-screen dousing – Directors Mike Fleiss and Mike Piscitelli offer bonus insight into the man and his rockin’ past and present in this entertaining but mostly touching documentary.
The film, which though funny (like the MTV series that followed the Osbourne family around on their daily adventures) is more camera-lens to open-wound, weaves interviews with Osbourne’s family (Sharon, Kelly, Jack – also a producer on the film) and friends, including rockers Henry Rollins and Tommy Lee, with footage of the man on stage (back in the Black Sabbath days and recent stuff from his latest tour). Mostly though, it’s a sit down with the man himself who, appreciably, opens up about his sordid past (namely the drugs and alcohol) and how he mistreated his family at times.
Osbourne’s children from his previous marriage, Jessica and Louis, also appear on camera testifying to the rocker’s inability to be the dad they needed them to be when they were younger.
Though there’s not a lot in here about the prince of darkness’s self-confessed infidelity or any recent troubles at home, there’s still a lot of opening-up going on here – particularly in terms of Osbourne’s shameful past and his struggles as a penniless child.
Obviously the movie is going to mostly appeal to fans of Osbourne and Black Sabbath, and if only because so much of it is watching the man do his thing on stage, but even occasional viewers of “The Osbournes” and the odd “No More Tears” fan should find it an easily endurable and welcomingly informative alternative to the 3D fluff showing in the cinema next door.
Extras :
Q&A with Jack and Oz, film festival footage and deleted scenes.
