Review: Campy documentary ‘Mansfield 66/67’ playfully chronicles short, controversial life of taboo-breaking blond
The campy, colorful documentary “Mansfield 66/67,” directed by P. David Ebersole and Todd Hughes, takes a romp through the mythology and magic surrounding the life and death of “The Smartest Dumb Blond,” actress Jayne Mansfield. The film bills itself as a “true story based on rumor and hearsay,” which is much like the public image of Mansfield that persists to this day.
Ebersole and Hughes have rounded up an eclectic group of talking heads, including John Waters, Mamie Van Doren, Tippi Hedren, Kenneth Anger, A.J. Benza and drag icon Peaches Christ, as well as a handful of academics and performers. Their discussions are supplemented by archival material and footage of Mansfield, as well as a kooky choreographed routine performed by blond-wigged dancers that depicts the dramatic ups and downs of Mansfield’s too short life.
The film surveys her career and family, but dives deep into her relationship with Church of Satan founder — and fellow publicity nut — Anton LaVey, especially what these public figures symbolized culturally. The film draws connections between their encounters and Mansfield’s death with a conspiratorial fervor, flirting around the edges of suggesting that LaVey’s curse on Mansfield’s lover Sam Brody may have led to their gruesome demise.
But it’s clear that the speculations are in good fun. It’s not an intimate portrait of the woman, but a celebration of the sex-positive, taboo-breaking image she created for herself and the way she rocked American culture during a hugely transitional moment.
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Not rated
Running time: 1 hour, 24 minutes
Playing: Laemmle Ahrya Fine Arts, Beverly Hills
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