“The World According to Allee Willis” (2024)
I didn’t know Allee Willis’s name going into this documentary, but it turns out I was very familiar with her work in music and on screen.
She launched into the entertainment industry writing songs for legends like Patti LaBelle and Cyndi Lauper, including big hits like Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September” and “I’ll Be There for You” by The Rembrandts (the “Friends” theme song).
From writing those songs to doing the set design for Shelley Duvall’s 1990 made-for-TV musical “Mother Goose Rock ‘n’ Rhyme,” I grew up with Willis, even though I didn’t know it.
As a queer white woman who grew up in the Midwest surrounded by Black culture, I saw myself reflected in some of Willis’s story, and I was quickly drawn into “The World According to Allee Willis.”
Some of the most effective storytelling in this documentary is seeing the lyrics to the songs she wrote scrolling over the top of the images as Willis and her friends tell her story.
On top of the praise for this documentary, I am now obsessed with her house and her style. I personally think that is the highest praise you can give to a documentary, when it motivates you to learn more about a person or topic you didn’t know much about before.
Unfortunately, Willis died in 2019, but I personally believe it is never too late to give someone their flowers. I want to explore Willisville!