The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell

You're not going to punk rock your way out of this one

thedayofthedot

I never heard of this man in my life and 40 minutes in/after the Beatlefest story specifically I knew I loved him

SweeneyTom

As the title indicates, Bill Bartell was an enigma: a closeted gay man who compartmentalized his life while founding a record label, befriending bands like Redd Kross, Sonic Youth and the Germs, and playing guitar in the punk band White Flag. He took his cop/cowboy fetish…

Steve Erickson

This combined some of my favorite elements of a doc, especially a rock doc: punk related, a story about almost incomprehensible personal achievements and how it affected the “scene” around them, chocked full of stories and twists, lovingly made by everyone involved. Bill…

Eric Truchan

An incredible and touching tribute to a man who should need no introduction. The amazingly talented Bill Bartell will never be forgotten, as his influence runs deep in Punk and, of course, now that this documentary has shed some light on Bill’s most outrageous soul. (I’ll…

a•don•nis kent

Where to Watch: available now, order your copy here: www.mvdshop.com or https://amzn.to/3OF3GcA RAVING REVIEW: There’s a certain kind of person who shows up in the margins of history books but never quite earns a chapter. THE SECRET LIVES OF BILL BARTELL argues that Bill…

Overly Honest Reviews

A fantastic feature-length documentary portrait of an American Alternative Music legend, The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell (2025) is a fascinating and moving look at a true one of a kind iconoclast. Directed by the celebrated David Markey, The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell…

Jeremy Richey

The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell (2025) Dave Markey’s latest documentary is his most accomplished and absorbing work to date. It's a portrait of a man with a wild, deeply layered past—someone who was never quite himself, though he expressed that self in the strangest and…

MiFrost

Like its subject, The Secret Lives of Bill Bartell is far more than it seems at first glance. Although not well-known outside of LA punk and alternative music circles, the film makes the case that Bill Bartell had a far-reaching influence. It's fun to watch Bartell as a…

Chris G