I had no interest in seeing Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice, but I was in plenty of theaters showing the film and witnessed people gushing about or crying after watching the film. I tried to encourage mom to go outside and see it in the theater (she was self-isolating before it became cool), but she had zero interest in seeing it on the big screen so we waited until it was available for home viewing on DVD. She enjoyed it, and I was bored out of my mind. I am officially a philistine. I was neither into Ronstadt’s music or the documentary. (I only know You’re No Good and Don’t Know Much with Aaron Neville.) I understand that objectively I am wrong so you should probably find someone else who actually likes her and find out what they think.

I love watching documentaries about people or subjects that I know nothing about, especially if they are about remarkable women. A documentary proves its worth if it leaves me wanting more, and Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice did nothing for me. Ronstadt acts as the narrator in the film while archival film from talk shows, award ceremonies and concerts and montages of photographs, record covers and magazine covers illustrate what she is saying. There are plenty of moments when she is relieved of duty when other people from her life, which include famous people in the music industry, get interviewed to basically break up the monotony of “this” then “that” and get atmospheric flavor.

Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is primarily about her career. It is mostly an autobiography of her music, not her. I am a music consumer, not a person with a deeper understanding of how music works, but I think that this film will blow you away if you belong to the latter because she is allegedly a polymath and genius. To my unrefined ear, she sounds like she is wailing and whining in Different Drum and other hits. I don’t get it! She covers Rescue Me in the most unseasoned way possible that I learned Fontella Bass’ name in retroactive, overdue appreciation for what Bass gave us and obviously it is Aretha Franklin’s song. Cher sings, “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s in His Kiss).” I will take your word for it that she was slaughtering crowds, Cameron Crowe. Different crowds. Not everything is for me, and that is ok, but telling me and not showing me how she was insanely successful and well received is not doing her any favors. The Muppets’ clip was flames, but Ronstadt is like Beyonce?

If you are a filmmaker, it is the problem of access. A filmmaker’s control of their film is proportional to the amount of control and access that the filmmaker has over the subject, but the more famous a subject is, the less control that the filmmaker has. Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice is an authorized documentary that clearly respects her boundaries. I have no problem with boundaries and respecting them, but it does not mean that I will enjoy what you give me. I am a tad prurient. Ronstadt lived during the sixties, but this documentary is so dull and buttoned up, it literally makes spending the night in jail sound like a trip to the grocery store. If you watched the film, you probably missed it. Do you know why? I am old at heart and love intergenerational friendships with people who are generations older than me so if I think that most of the interviews sound like a bunch of old people droning on repeatedly about nothing much. A lot of people tell you what she is like as a person, but they are guys who are attracted to her so the descriptions do not help, “She could seem very vulnerable and feminine, but when she opened her mouth to sing everything got different.” Thanks, Neil Young. Can’t judge a woman by her appearances. Got it! Very insightful. Some guys dish about their romantic relationships with her, but these are the most sexless, sterile relationships relayed on screen. Everyone just listens to, plays and writes music. I am fairly certain that was not all they did, but sure, ok. Somewhere Tony Curtis is shaking his head in disappointment. It did not help that I saw it after David Crosby: Remember My Name, which is the exact opposite in terms of levels of excitement. (Side note: they both seem to hate Jim Morrison.) That man can tell a story. The movie lacks so much curiosity that we never find out why she gave a certain name to a band even though it is asked in a talk show clip. Seriously!?! Is everything a secret?

I left Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice without a sense of what it was like to hang out with her as a person until women artists started talking about her. It sounds like she was the opposite of a queen bee and was great at creating community. Still I left the movie not knowing if she was fun at brunch. Especially now that she literally cannot sing, who is she? I hate that the documentary solely defined her by her music. For me, the professional life is the entry point into learning about the whole person, but a person should not be solely defined by their external worth to others. There is one clip from a talk show where she casually rattles off her political views. Unsurprisingly Dolly Parton did the best job describing what it is like to live in that time and space with those people. Also Parton casually sings a few lines, and I do not even like country music, but she is unquestioningly amazing. For all this talk from people who allegedly love music, only Parton feels compelled to express herself spontaneously through song. Ronstadt can’t and eventually can’t help it, but what was everyone else’s excuse. Parton explains that she is more about feeling than technical perfection, and her actions show that she is the real deal, which is maybe why she overshadowed Ronstadt and every other person who talks in this film.

For a documentary that explicitly critiques male dominated industries and praises Ronstadt for being determined to be a woman not confirming to masculine norms, maybe Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice could have benefited from adopting its own note. It takes a very dry, traditional approach to Ronstadt’s career instead of reflecting it in the way that they told her story. I also would have loved to hear from Mexican people in the music world instead of for instance David Geffen regarding her Mexican heritage. It is possible that the film did feature people who actually met that qualification, but it assumes that we know everyone featured because they are famous. It is obvious that she tried to push herself musically and excelled at it, but I would have loved to hear what the true experts say. I love hearing what Gordon Ramsay has to say about food, but want him to take a back seat when it comes to cuisines that he learned yesterday and get the verdict from those who lived that cuisine.

If you love the titular singer or well versed in music as a discipline, Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice will be a treat, but do not expect any in depth focus on her life outside of her career. For the rest of us, skip it. I did leave wanting to know more about Parton.