This is the reason why I am not sure the newer generations will feel the full impact of the horrors that await in DeBarge. They may have to wait for their own documentaries where boy bands are forced to bathe in fire hydrants. And boomers are going to not get the importance of the music and wonder why the DeBarge family just doesn’t move into their summer home. So this one is completely for Gen X, as only we can measure the length of the fall from the view from the bottom.
DeBarge was absolutely not what I was expecting, and therein lies its power. Documentarian Siretta lets his subject take full control of the film’s direction, which is quite rare and wonderful. For a rundown of all the bad behavior during their time in the limelight, there are tawdry VH1-style exposés galore to watch instead.
There is a chilling scene where James is watching for the first time a Janet Jackson doc that mentions her being left on her wedding night for hours while her new husband was out getting f****d up. James’s reaction to his prior behavior is some of the most genuine sorrow caught onscreen in a film about musicians.
“… lets his subject take full control of the film’s direction, which is quite rare and wonderful.”
But honesty is what James is setting out to do with the documentary, as painful as that ends up being. This pain is intensified by the contrast with the reminiscing and clips of their ascent to music stardom. The stark injustice about their situation is how there were so many people in the same decrepit boat due to being in the wrong place, California, at the wrong time, which was the early twenties.
The DeBarge RVs are just small links in a huge chain of folks having to live in lines of campers due to impossible rents. The situation this family found itself in is through no fault of their own, which is one of the reasons why El refused to participate. We see him at a funeral at the end, which is a very long sequence that also confounds some audience members.
It fits, though, because in the end, Siretta gives James and his family what they need, and not what his audience may expect. DeBarge is a solemn portrait of the lowest low from the highest high, but also a loud refusal to just fade away.
DeBarge screened at the 2025 Slamdance Film Festival.
"…some of the most genuine sorrow caught onscreen in a film about musicians."
