Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For(2000)

Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For Synopsis

Writer-director Charlotte Zwerin performs sleight of hand with this beautifully composed documentary, originally produced for public television's American Masters series. Created nearly four years after Ella Fitzgerald's death, Zwerin's film uses the lush voice and superb repertoire of "the First Lady of Song" to provide continuity while assembling convincing, if composite, narrative quotes gleaned from various interviews. The latter are noteworthy given the singer's lifelong modesty and insistence on privacy. Archival footage of early performances, as well as later television appearances, capture Ella's pilgrimage from Depression-era New York, through her discovery at the Apollo Theater and subsequent emergence as a swing vocalist and on to her long career as a matchless pop and jazz stylist. Tony Bennett is a sympathetic narrator, while added affection and insight are provided through

Ella Fitzgerald: Something to Live For (2000) is a music and documentary film directed by Charlotte Zwerin, released on January 25, 2000 with a runtime of 1h 26m. It stars Tony Bennett. Viewers rate it 7.5 out of 10 across 2 ratings.