Movie Review: “Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything” Shines an Intimate Light on the Legendary ABC News Trailblazer
The makers of Jim Henson Idea Man are bringing a new documentary to Hulu, focusing on the iconic trailblazing ABC News personality Barabra Walters. I was thoroughly impressed with the way that the Jim Henson documentary was crafted, so I was intrigued to see how those techniques would transfer over to a different kind of figure like Barabra Walters. This documentary is not as creative as the former, but it focuses on someone a lot more serious, so it feels right.
Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything tells the story of Walters’ career in a pretty linear fashion, with the occasional flashback to her youth to provide extra background where relevant. I learned a lot about her, such as her upbringing around celebrities, as her father owned a pretty famous club in New York. It was this ease around celebrities and political figures that allowed her interview style to feel so relaxed – like you were talking to a friend.
The documentary does a great job of highlighting the true impact Walters had in her field. During her early years with NBC and ABC, the news was very much a man’s job – with the likes of Walter Cronkite leading the field. Walters certainly did something to change that, but it wasn’t easy. And the documentary doesn’t shy away from highlighting how low she felt at times. Her relationship with her daughter was strained, and devoting herself so much to the business inevitably led to sacrifices in her personal life.
Special highlights are given to some of Walters’ most famous, and infamous interviews. In the late 1970s, she used her charm and contacts to get one over on the Cronkites of the world and scored an interview with the presidents of Egypt and Israel during a time of conflict between the two nations, leading to her interview having a real-world impact. 20 years later, it was Walters who Monica Lewinsky turned to tell her story – which scored a record-breaking 74 million viewers.
The documentary ends, as her career did, with The View – a show she created, by women for women – which is still going strong today. This is complemented by commentary from many of her peers and successors in the field, who really help to showcase how much of a trailblazer Walters really was. People like Oprah Winfrey, Joy Behar, Connie Chung, and many of the people who worked behind the scenes alongside Walters.
Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything really did a great job of telling me everything I needed to know about Barbara Walters. It’s a name everyone is familiar with, but her personal life and story was a mystery to me. It was fascinating to find out what led her down the path she took – much of the story in her own words – and how she used her brilliant charm and excellent interviewing skills to open doors for women in her field.
Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything begins streaming on 6/23 on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+