Product Details

• Directors: Larry Buchanan
• Number of tapes: 1
• Studio: Unicorn Video
• Run Time: 117 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000MAEXZ6
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #364,146 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

According to this film by no-budget auteur (and conspiracy buff) Larry Buchanan, singers Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and the Doors' Jim Morrison didn't die of drug overdoses; in fact, Morrison didn't die at all! The government sent an assassin (who got the job because he didn't like his son listening to rock 'n' roll records) to kill them because they were trying to influence young people to protest against the Vietnam war. Hendrix and Joplin were killed by the assassin, but Morrison faked his death and hid out in a monastery in Spain. Oh well, stranger things have happened . . . - Brian Gusse

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Conspiracy against rock stars?, October 19, 2009

By 

golgotha.gov (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond the Doors (VHS Tape)

BEYOND THE DOORS (1984)
also known as 'DOWN ON US'
directed by Larry Buchanan
approximately 2 hours

Joe Bob Briggs used to have a review column in a zine. The title of the publication escapes me, but I've always been a fan of Joe Bob & it was in this underground format that I learned about the movie 'Beyond the Doors'. This movie attempts to explain the premature demises of three prominent rock musicians: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Jopin & Jim Morrison. This was not director Larry Buchanan's first foray into this style of movie. He previously directed two movies about Marilyn Monroe's private life as well as The Trial of Lee Harvey Oswald.

The movie is not really about the Doors. In fact, of the three musicians, Morrison's character is given the least amount of screen time. The movie attempts to show a government conspiracy to eliminate "roadblocks" to Nixon's reelection (the movie's terms). The three rock musicians were selected because of their appeal to America's youth. This is tied into FBI head J Edgar Hoover who at that time was conducting the infamous COINTELPRO operation against dissident groups. The details of COINTELPRO are well known to students of alternative politics in this country, and while it did target Hollywood figures such as Jean Seberg it is less clear that musicians were investigated as thoroughly. It should be pointed out, however, that many of the COINTELPRO targets were smeared and intimidated but only a limited number of them were actually murdered. The movie specifically mentions William C Sullivan, an FBI intelligence officer who later wrote a tell all about his time in the Bureau. Sullivan died in a hunting accident in 1977.

Of the movie's characters, Jimi Hendrix is the most likely target due to the fact that he had met with persons affiliated with the Black Panthers (who were being heavily monitored). His encounter with the Panthers is referred to in the movie. The movie suggests that the rock stars were slipped some bad drugs. Of course all three rock stars had used copius quantities of narcotics & alcohol so an early death could just as easily have been a consequence of this lifestyle.

This movie is an interesting experiment in that it is attempting to present a conspiracy theory to a teen audience (most of Larry Buchanan's movie were directed at young people). Does it succeed as entertainment? Fans of the three artists will probably find the imitation music to be unimpressive but the guy who plays Jimi Hendrix does a pretty good impression. It may not be the most compelling drama but it beats Jomo & the Smoothies.

A book that investigates some of the themes contained in this movie is Feral House's The Covert War Against Rock by Alex Constantine.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A bit silly, April 2, 2007

By 

T. P. Watt - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Beyond the Doors (VHS Tape)

A film that suggests Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin and Jim Morrison were all murdered by an interlinked conspiracy, but offers little in the way of hard proof to back up this claim. The three legendary musicians/singers are portrayed by actors performing songs "in the style of" Jimi, Janis and Jim. So not only is there no footage of the actual musicians performing, but none of their actual music is to be heard, either. The actors provide what boils down to impressions of the dead legends, with varied results. Suppose this may be interesting if viewed following a few bongloads, but short of that, not so much.