Soaked in Bleach

Benjamin Statler's death-obsessed documentary had the misfortune of making the festival film rounds at the same time as Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck. While Brett Morgen's Cobain family-approved film has met with accolades, Soaked in Bleach hasn't enjoyed the same acclaim. Statler builds the narrative around the findings of Tom Grant, the Los Angeles private investigator hired by Courtney Love after her husband disappeared in early April 1994. Grant would end up raising doubts that Cobain died by his own hand. Grant's comments and audio recordings are combined here with news reports and dramatic reenactments (actors portray Cobain, Grant, Love, and Dylan Carlson—the musician who gave his friend a shotgun for protection after a burglary; Carlson didn't believe Kurt was suicidal). Statler also visits Aberdeen, WA, to interview friends, neighbors, and school administrators about Cobain's early days. Other speakers include journalists, law enforcement officers, pathologists, and toxicologists. From the start of Grant's investigation, Love told a number of lies, which set off alarm bells, although Grant acknowledges that she wasn't exactly sober during their meetings. Love also lied to other people, including the Seattle Police Department, with whom she filed a missing persons report under Cobain's mother's name (the media would report this as fact). Concerning Love, Grant concludes, “It's not often that a private investigator goes against his client, so I'm sure she regrets hiring me.” Viewers interested in Cobain's death will likely be drawn to this documentary, which plays more like a TV special than a theatrical release, and—being unauthorized—features no music by Nirvana. Optional. (K. Fennessy)