Zappa
2020 · Movie · NR · 129 min · ★ 7.3 · 86% critics
Backed by more than 10,000 devoted fans, this documentary from Alex Winter presents a long-awaited look at the life and career of the groundbreaking rock star Frank Zappa. Drawing on thousands of hours from Zappa’s private archives, it shares rare videos, photos, audio, and writings never before seen publicly.
Also known as Who the F*@% Is Frank Zappa?
Where to watch
Watch free on Pluto TV and Tubi — also streaming on Hoopla, Dox and Magnolia Selects.
2 hours to watch.
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Details
- Years
- 2020
- Release date
- 2020-11-27
- Language
- English
- Rated
- NR
- Runtime
- 129 min
- Max quality
- HD
- Critic score
- 86/100
- TMDB rating
- 7.3/10 (65 votes)
About
For fans of music documentaries and thorough archival storytelling, this is a must-watch; Not for you if you prefer mainstream entertainment over dense music-history deep dives like The Velvet Underground or Beastie Boys Story.
Pros: deep fan-driven access; rich archive material; thorough career focus | Cons: heavy documentary tone; niche subject appeal
Themes
- composer
- biography
- avant-garde
- progressive rock
- rock singer
- bandleader
- life and career
- the mother of invention
- famous song
- revolutionary singer
- american musician
- biographical documentary
Cast & crew
Frank Zappa
as Self (archive footage)
Mike Keneally
as Self - Played with Zappa 1987-1988
Pamela Des Barres
as Self - Author, Former Member of the GTOs
- LL
Lonnie Lardner
as Self - Newscaster for Action News (archive footage)
- PZ
Patrice Zappa
as Self - Frank Zappa's Sister (archive footage)
- RZ
Rose Zappa
as Self - Frank Zappa's Mother (archive footage)
- FZ
Francis Zappa
as Self - Frank Zappa's Father (archive footage)
Edgard Varèse
as Self (archive footage)
- DV
Don Van Vliet
as Self (archive footage) (as Captain Beefheart)
- TI
The Mothers of Invention
as Themselves (archive footage)
Directed by Alex Winter