What it lacks in artfulness, Wish Me Away makes up for in emotive force. Bobbie Birleffi and Beverly Kopf's documentary about singer Chely Wright,
the first country star to come out as gay, jumps somewhat clumsily
around to fill in the gaps in its subject's backstory and trace the
buildup to her announcement, employing interviews with Wright and her
associates and offering up excerpts from the singer's video diary in
which Wright, looking exhausted from worry, confesses her fears about
her ability to go through outing herself. The film tells a forceful
personal story, and it also doubles as a terrifying look at the
entrenched "family values" culture that not only pervades much of the
Bible Belt, but also makes the idea of an out country singer
unthinkable.
Director: Bobbie Birleffi
Writer: Unknown or Not Available
Studio: Unknown
Chely Wright: Wish Me Away is the story of Chely Wright, the first
country music star to come out as gay. Over three years, the filmmakers
were given extraordinary access to Chely's struggle and her unfolding
plan to come out publicly. Using interviews with Chely, her family, her
pastor, and key players in Nashville interwoven with Chely's intimate
private video diaries, the film goes deep into her back story as an
established country music star and then forward as she steps into the
national spotlight to
reveal her secret. Chronicling the aftermath in her hometown of
Nashville and within the larger LGBT community, Wish Me Away reveals
both the devastation of her own internalized homophobia and the
transformational power of living an authentic life.
