''New York Doll'' is a documentary based on the life of former New York Dolls member Arthur Kane. It was nominated for both a

Satellite Award The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take place ...

and a

Grand Jury Prize A film festival is an organized, extended presentation of films in one or more cinemas or screening venues, usually in a single city or region. Increasingly, film festivals show some films outdoors. Films may be of recent date and, depending upo ...

at the Sundance Film Festival, where it premiered in 2005.

Synopsis

The film details the history of both the New York Dolls and one of its members, Arthur "Killer" Kane. The film narrates the history of the band from its formation in 1972, through its drug problems and the deaths of several of its members. The central focus of the film, however, is Arthur's life after conversion to

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian Christian church that considers itself to be the restoration of the original church founded by Jesus Christ. The ch ...

after struggles with

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

, drug abuse, an attempt at suicide, and a 1992 beating with a baseball bat (falsely rumored to be related to the

Rodney King riots The 1992 Los Angeles riots, sometimes called the 1992 Los Angeles uprising and the Los Angeles Race Riots, were a series of riots and civil disturbances that occurred in Los Angeles County, California, in April and May 1992. Unrest began in So ...

happening at the same time) that left him near death and needing a long recovery. As Kane struggles with both loneliness and poverty, he discovers that he will once again have a chance to perform with the Dolls in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. After overcoming his differences with former band member

David Johansen David Roger Johansen (sometimes spelled ''David Jo Hansen''; born January 9, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the seminal proto-punk band the New York Dolls. He is also known for his work under ...

, Kane has a successful performance. Upon his return to Los Angeles, Kane contemplates touring with the reunited Dolls, but plans are cut short by his unexpected death from

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

. The film features interviews with Morrissey, who arranged the reunion show, as well as other artists such as Chrissie Hynde and Bob Geldof. ''New York Doll'' was shot on digital camcorders with an aspect ratio of 1.78:1. It scored a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes out of 51 reviews.

References

External links

* *{{Rotten Tomatoes, new_york_doll 2005 films American documentary films Documentary films about Mormonism Documentary films about punk music and musicians Latter Day Saints in popular culture Rockumentaries 2000s English-language films 2000s American films