Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell – Netflix’s new documentary gets mixed reviews

Main complaint in reviews appears to be that filmmakers dwell too long on certain topics, and not long enough on others

Roisin O'Connor
Monday 01 March 2021 12:52 GMT
Comments
Biggie: I Have a Story to Tell trailer

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Also known as the Notorious BIG or just Biggie, the artist born Christopher Wallace is the subject of yet another documentary.

Netflix’s Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell was produced by Sean Combs and Biggie’s mother, Violetta Wallace, and was released on the streaming service on 1 March.

It has received mixed reviews; some critics praised it for not dwelling on the still-unsolved mystery of Biggie’s murder, while others complained that it lacked substance.

In a four-star review, The Guardian said the documentary was “a moving life story” but noted it still omitted the darker rumours surrounding the late artist.

In a more negative review from Slate, I Got a Story to Tell was criticised for spending a “bizarre” amount of time on Biggie’s early career as a drug dealer, saying that this perpetuated outdated stereotypes of rappers in the Nineties.

“To say this is a well-trod topic is an understatement: Biggie brought it up in nearly every song he ever recorded,” the review said. “But like any great crime writer, Biggie’s interest in drug dealing wasn’t in the act itself but rather the metaphorical power it provided, a narrative terrain through which to explore power, greed, injustice, violence, sex, and pretty much everything else.

It added: “Drug dealing is interesting in Biggie’s music because Biggie was a genius, not because dealing drugs is inherently interesting.”

A review in The Hollywood Reporter said: “There’s enough good, previously unseen stuff in Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell to make it an easy recommendation, though seeing and hearing stuff you haven't seen before isn't the same as learning a lot of things you didn't know before.

“It’s captivating because Biggie was captivating, without being enlightening. But as Biggie put it, ‘If you don't know, now you know.’”

I Got a Story to Tell is available now on Netflix.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in