Born Vincent Furnier, the son of a preacher, Alice Cooper emerged from the Detroit scene of the 1970s in a flurry of long hair and sequins to restore rock with a sense of showmanship, while simultaneously striking fear into the very core of Middle America with the chicken-slaughtering, dead-baby-eating theatrics that would cement his identity.

In an appropriately dizzying stylistic evocation of the Alice Cooper persona, this first ever “Doc Opera” (from the team behind TFF 2010 Audience Award winner Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage) is a whirlwind collage of rare archival footage, animation, and candid interviews, adding up to the epic sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll saga of a man who got caught in the grip of his own monster.

-Cara Cusumano