191. Mansfield 66/67; movie review

MANSFIELD 66/67
Cert 15
85 mins
BBFC advice: Contains images of real dead bodies, strong language, nudity

Mansfield in 1966/67? Are we talking about the Nottinghamshire town and its football team which is trying to thwart mine in the race for promotion?
Apparently not. This is about Jayne Mansfield the tragic blonde bombshell who picked up the mantel from Marilyn Monroe... and then fell for a satanist.
Oh, I get it. The satanist was in her life from 1966 until her death in 1967... and there are three sixes in those dates, aren't there?
This convoluted connection is apt for a story which is, as they say, stranger than fiction and has fittingly bizarre presentation during Todd Hughes and P David Ebersole's documentary.
Mansfield 66/67 includes contributions from those who knew the actress (including remarkable fellow bombshell Mamie Van Doren) and also offers speculation about her final years which were largely away from the public eye.
Oh, and it has occasional song and dance accompaniment.
I must admit that the latter didn't work for me but I was interested in what made peroxide blonde No.2 tick.
The movie chronicles Mansfield's rollercoaster life from her successes on the big screen in the 50s to coming under the spell (some say literally) of the head of the Church of Satan, Anton LaVey.
Finally, it alights upon her gory death in a car crash which remains shrouded in mystery.
I am not quite sure why the directors felt the need to add a comedic element to their film's presentation because it could have well done without it.
The story of Mansfield, her success, her tangled love life and the notorious satanist was certainly enough to keep me interested.
The distractions of dancers acting out part of the story was unnecessary and off-putting.

Reasons to watch: an interesting and tragic story of a world star
Reasons to avoid: Its strange presentation is off-putting

Laughs: None
Jumps: None
Vomit: None
Nudity: Yes
Overall rating: 6/10

Director quote - Todd Hughes: "(Jayne Mansfield met Anton LaVey, the head of the Church of Satan,  who reportedly put a curse on her bad boyfriend and said he would die within a year in a car accident and told Jayne to get away from him. "

The big question - Did a curse really cause the fatal crash?

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