Terrible. I thought this would actually be about Charlie's music, not a ton of speculation about the murders. Lots of inaccuracies compared to everything I've ever read about the Family (including books by them) and people who were not there giving so called facts about things that they know nothing about. Not worth watching for anybody who actually knows anything about the people and events from that period of time. Since I need more characters to publish thus I'll just repeat myself here...self proclaimed "experts" are giving their imagination of things said and done that they know nothing about as facts is sickening. If they'd ever read anything, even "Heather Skelter" maybe they would have sounded just a teeny tiny bit less ignorant.

The only other review posted for this documentary (as I write this) by 'ferguson-6' does an excellent job of describing what it's all about, from the troubled early days of a youthful Charles Manson, to the horrifying events that transpired on August 8th and 9th, 1969. On successive nights, members of the infamous 'Manson Family' brutally butchered actress Sharon Tate and four others, upon the direction of Charles Manson, who's dream of becoming a rock star was sorely tested by reality, plunging the cult leader into a spiraling descent of paranoia and delusion. A failure as a criminal (he was always caught), Manson served seven years in prison, and was already thirty two years old when he arrived in Los Angeles in 1967, during the 'Summer of Love'. Oddly, for all of his criminal tendencies, he had a crafty and charismatic personality, and was a great performer and teacher who managed to attract young followers to a cultish lifestyle. When two of his family members hitched a ride with Dennis Wilson of The Beach Boys one day, Manson found his opportunity to gain an audience with some of the most influential people involved in the LA music industry.

Probably the most interesting thing about this documentary is actually hearing some of the songs written and performed by Manson. In all fairness to the people associated with Manson during that ill fated time, I think some of their views and opinions often bordered on being overly complimentary. When you hear Manson's voice and listen to some of his lyrics, it's not all that good. I won't deny that Manson might have had a talent that could have been developed, but what comes across in the documentary is mostly juvenile. Think along the lines of The Beatles' 'I Wanna Hold Your Hand'; his writing was mostly like that. Which may not be surprising, as Manson was miraculously inspired by the Beatles when they hit the pop charts. But the Beatles were in their early twenties at the time, starting out by appealing to a teenage audience, while Manson was a decade older and still attempting to find himself.

What I didn't know about Manson is revealed in the latter third of this documentary, when he went off the rails after the Beach Boys recorded a song that he and Brian Wilson collaborated on. Manson's tune was titled 'Cease to Exist', but Wilson reworked the lyrics and renamed the song 'Never Learn Not To Love'; it earned a 'B' side on the single 'Bluebirds Over the Mountain'. Though he was paid for the collaboration, Manson received no credit, sending him into a rage and a direct confrontation with Wilson. Shortly after, Manson became obsessed with what he believed was an imminent black/white race war, furthered by the belief that the Beatles were speaking directly to him with their song 'Helter Skelter' from the White Album. Mistaking words from the song as a call to action, Manson had members of his cult family go to the former home of record producer Terry Melcher to create the chaos that eventually ensued at 10050 Cielo Drive in Los Angeles where the Sharon Tate murder occurred. The irony of the song 'Helter Skelter' is demonstrated by a clip from a British fairground, the term and the lyrics in the Beatles song describe an amusement park ride! That's something I never knew, and was the biggest surprise coming out of this story for me.

Over all, this was a fascinating look at the 'real' Charles Manson, separate and apart from what we all remember him for. Unfortunately, what we do remember him for is so totally abhorrent that it's hard to imagine him having any kind of life apart from the vicious and brutal murders that define his legacy. Check this out and you'll see what I mean.