Categories: FilmFilm Review

Watch the trailer for Alex Winter’s authorized and ‘definitive’ Frank Zappa documentary

Frank Zappa in ZAPPA, a Magnolia Pictures release. Photo credit: Roelof Kiers. Photo courtesy of Magnolia Pictures.

Alex Winter’s Frank Zappa documentary was meant to screen at this year’s SXSW film festival before it was shut down to the spread of coronavirus, and will now see the light of day on November 27 via Magnolia Pictures (with a special theatrical showing on November 23).

Zappa is filled with rare archival footage of the absurdly talented and prolific singer-songwriter and is set to explore the life of one of the most boundary-pushing musicians and public figures in rock history, from his exacting studio standards to his censorship battles with The Parents Music Resource Center.


“Frank Zappa was not only a creative genius, but also a great and eloquent thinker who articulated the madness of his times with extraordinary clarity and wit,” says Alex Winter. “A legitimate maverick who lived and worked amongst other extraordinary people in historic times. Ultimately, ZAPPA is not a retro trip into the past, but a thoroughly modern exploration of a man whose worldview, art and politics were far ahead of their time, and profoundly relevant in our challenging times.”

Check out the trailer and poster below. Zappa is out on November 27.

Gabriel Sigler

Share
Published by
Gabriel Sigler

Recent Posts

SXSW 2026 Music Wrap-Up: From Charley Crockett to Flesh Juicer, The Best Acts From This Year’s Festival

The best live acts from the 2026 SXSW Music Festival with country star Charley Crockett,…

2 weeks ago

SXSW 2026 Film Review: Buddy

Director Casper Kelly returns with Buddy, a darkly comic take on a children's TV mascot…

3 weeks ago

SXSW 2026 Film Review: Hokum

Irish filmmaker Damian McCarthy (Oddity) returns with a terrifying folk-horror film starring Adam Scott.

1 month ago

SXSW 2026: The Best Music Films to Catch at This Year’s Festival

Including Mile End Kicks, a romantic comedy set during Montreal's indie scene boom in the…

1 month ago

The Vans Warped Tour Montreal Full Lineup is Here

The flyer for the complete Vans Warped Tour Montreal festival, August 21-22 at Parc Jean-Drapeau.

1 month ago

SEND HELP Review: Office Space Meets Evil Dead in Sam Raimi’s Bloody Satire

Sam Raimi returns to his comedy-horror roots with the gleefully gross Send Help, starring Rachel…

3 months ago