3 weeks ago
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Martha Stewart had more than a few gripes about R.J. Cutler’s Netflix documentary “Martha.”
The iconic businesswoman told the New York Times that she “hates” how the film ended with her “looking like a lonely old lady.” And don’t even get Stewart started on the “lousy classical score,” especially when her pal Snoop Dogg could have easily been part of the feature instead.
“I said to [director] R.J., ‘An essential part of the film is that you play rap music,’” Stewart said. “Dr. Dre will probably score it, or [Snoop Dogg] or Fredwreck. I said, ‘I want that music.’ And then he gets some lousy classical score in there, which has nothing to do with me.”
While Stewart loved “the first half of the documentary,” the second half fell short. The latter portion of the film includes her jail stint and career resurgence. As Kate Erbland’s IndieWire review, “Martha” presents a “before” and an “after” Stewart, and the real Stewart didn’t see why there had to be a distinction.
“It was not that important,” Stewart said of her time in prison. “The trial and the actual incarceration was less than two years out of an 83-year life. I considered it a vacation, to tell you the truth.”
She added, “The trial itself was extremely boring. Even the judge fell asleep. R.J. didn’t even put that in. The judge was asleep at the bench. I wrote it in my diary every day.”
Plus, according to Stewart, director Cutler “used very little” of her personal archives, which she found to be “shocking.” Stewart was also dismayed that there was no “mention” of her grandchildren in the film.
“Those last scenes with me looking like a lonely old lady walking hunched over in the garden? Boy, I told him [Cutler] to get rid of those,” Stewart said. “And he refused. I hate those last scenes. Hate them.”
Yet “Martha” has already inspired audiences, which Stewart is thankful for.
“So many girls have already told me — young women — that watching it gave them a strength that they didn’t know they had,” Stewart said. “And that’s the thing I like most about the documentary. It really shows a strong woman standing up for herself and living through horror as well as some huge success.”
Cutler told the NYT that “Martha” is “a movie, not a Wikipedia page.”
“It’s the story of an incredibly interesting human being who is complicated and visionary and brilliant,” Cutler said. “I am really proud of this film, and I admire Martha’s courage in entrusting me to make it. I’m not surprised that it’s hard for her to see aspects of it.”
Academy Award-nominated and Emmy- and Peabody Award-winning director Cutler previously directed the definitive Anna Wintour and Vogue documentary “The September Issue,” plus “Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” and “Elton John: Never Too Late.”
Cutler recently told IndieWire’s Anne Thompson that Stewart prefers to be in control.
“Martha is Martha. One of the keys to Martha’s success is that when she’s in control, she triumphs. And one of the narrative lines in this movie is that when Martha lost [control], she went to prison,” Cutler said. “She lost control of her company, and this was a great loss, not just for Martha, and not just in terms of her company and her finances, but of the thing that she created, that meant most to her, her thoughts, her ideas. We lost so much when Martha went to prison because of that. She’s had a great comeback.”
Cutler continued, “So it took a tremendous amount of courage for Martha to let me tell her story. And it’s not easy; it becomes part of the dynamic of the film. Martha is a person who’s always looking forward, who hates therapy. I can’t tell you the number of times she said, ‘I’ve never been to therapy in my life, and now R.J. Cutler is going to put me in therapy.’ But she went there. Boy did she go there, and in places she didn’t want to go. She gave me the goods.”
English (US) ·