Charles Manson Superstar

In the late 60s, Charles Manson convinced a group of "followers" to move in to the California desert to train for the apocalypse. They eventually committed a horrific string of serial murders. Considered to be one of the definitive documentaries about Manson and his infamous "family," Charles Manson Superstar is a documentary film about Charles Manson, directed by Nikolas Schreck in 1989. Most of the documentary (the entire interview) was filmed inside San Quentin Prison. Schreck narrated the segments while images were shown, and music played in the background. There was brief footage of Spahn Ranch, and a short clip of James M. Mason being interviewed about the Universal Order, and Manson. Olivier Messiaen's "Death and Resurrection," Bobby Beausoleil's "Lucifer Rising," Krzysztof Penderecki's "Apocalypsis," and Anton La Vey's "The Satanic Mass," and Manson's "Lie & Completion," were the songs played during the film. Schreck was very calm and neutral during the interview. Manson talked and behaved in his bizarre way, but seemed more open and forthcoming with Schreck. Charles Manson is clearly an unbalanced man but he is interesting as a manikin on the scene of late twentieth century popular culture. It is noteworthy that Manson's inflections and emphasis in speaking are very similar to George W. Bush. Scary.