7. The Punk Singer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zMbLzaVkn2s "The Punk Singer" takes an in-depth look at one of the most important figures in punk music - Kathleen Hanna. It charts the progression of her career from the rise of her most well-known act Bikini Kill, to the formation of her electroclash band Le Tigre, and the various incarnations of The Julie Ruin. In between it all is a compelling look into her life behind and between the music as well as the varied responses to her work, from those who were reviled to those completely enamored. Everything is examined with unwavering energy as the young Hanna finds influence in experimental writer Kathy Acker and becomes the wild voice of the Riot Grrrl movement. Fellow musicians such as Carrie Brownstein and Kim Gordon discuss the power of Bikini Kill in the 90s as an energetic paragon of third-wave feminism. In 2005, she inexplicably dropped out of the music world and the documentary addresses the reason for her absence - a diagnosis of late-stage Lyme disease and her battle with the illness. The latter half of the film is spent discussing her struggle in solitude and the staging of a comeback with 2013's "Run Fast." The film is an excellent portrait of an essential figure in music as she continues to fight.