Buried within the bloated four-episode, three and a half hour running time of THE LADY AND THE DALE is a brilliant, scathing documentary about the automobile industry, family, ambition and sexual identity. More than a few of those moments shine through thanks to some clever storytelling.
Elizabeth Carmichael burst on the scene in 1970, loudly proclaiming her single handed devotion to take down the big three automakers. Her concept is clever if odd, a three-wheel, fuel efficient little beast known as the Dale.
Through hundreds of interviews with the actual players in the saga, you’re left with a group of people that see Liz as a brave, trailblazing woman in a David v Goliath battle against auto giants. The other half of the observers see Liz as a dangerous snake oil salesperson, building a huge cache of money around her that never quite finds her way to the car.
But is that true?
The evidence is certainly compelling that she was doing her best, building her Twentieth Century Motor Car Corporation to the full capabilities of her limited abilities. But her tactics often wonder into gray areas that soon slip into darker colors.
One wonders if the critics would have been so harsh if Elizabeth hadn’t been outed as a man named Gerry, midway through her transition to Elizabeth. Interview after interview shows FBI agents and the media admitting they had a personal detest for Gerry/Elizabeth.
Dick Carlson, the 1970 KTLA reports who stages a one man war against Elizabeth and everything she stands for is seen in many modern day interviews and clips from 50 years ago, proudly espousing his hate for Elizabeth and the mere thought of a transgender person. It’s pretty embarrassing in any time frame, but in 2020 it’s jaw dropping. Bloated over a large chair with a horrendous toupee, modern day Dick lives up to his name. I’m not sure I was very surprised when I found out that his son is Fox News’ Tucker Carlson.
Is Elizabeth out of her depth as a business pioneer? Yes.
Are her finance methods suspect? Absolutely.
Is she also clearly a caring parent with a passion for taking In society’s strays and changing their lives for the better? Just as strongly Yes.
Part courtroom drama, part FBI investigation, part family on the run thriller, it’s a fascinating tale.
Directors Nick Cammilleri and Zackary Drucker pop the story forward with film clips, fun animation, graphs, stock footage and plenty of actual video of Elizabeth on her quest. The clips from a 1970 “The Price Is Right” featuring The Dale in a showcase is a hell of a lot of fun.
I loved the visual style of the film, it could have been brilliant with some better editing down to 2+ hours, maybe even a trim 3.
Like most good documentaries, THE LADY AND THE DALE gives you plenty to think about. I was left wondering how Elizabeth would have fared if she started a Twenty First Century Motor Car Corporation today. There’s no doubt that her personal life would have played a much smaller role in her fortunes. THE LADY AND THE DALE get a B-.
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