All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is a documentary about the renowned photographer Nan Goldin and the activism she has been involved in the U.S. Opioid crisis. It was nominated for an Oscar in the Best Documentary category.
The film examines Goldin’s long career, as well as her recent advocacy campaign through P.A.I.N. which aims to raise awareness about the Sacklerses’ financial ties with major art institutions in the U.S.A. and internationally.
P.A.I.N. was founded by Goldin. After suffering an overdose from what she believed was dope, Goldin founded P.A.I.N. She was hooked on OxyContin, an addictive painkiller manufactured by Purdue Pharma (a company owned by the Sacklers), and had to stop using it.
The film was directed by Laura Poitras and won the Golden Lion award at Venice International Film Festival in September. It is one of few documentaries to ever have received this prize. Poitras’ 2014 documentary Citizenfour focuses on Edward Snowden and won the Best Documentary Oscar for 2015.
“If Poitras’s film were merely about Goldin being moved to action, it might be powerful enough,” Alex Greenberger wrote in Artnews when the film premiered at the New York Film Festival. Poitras takes it one step further by weaving that story through a fascinating recounting of Goldin’s development as an artist and person. All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is a great documentary about an artist that breaks down all boundaries between activism and art and art and life and work.
