Bully. Coward. Victim: The Story of Roy Cohn (2019)

Bully. Coward. Victim: The Story of Roy Cohn: Directed by Ivy Meeropol. With Cindy Adams, Joey Adams, Peter L. Allen, Noreen Bahring. A look at the life and work of New York power broker Roy Cohn.

“I went into this documentary not being to familiar with Roy Cohn or the Rosenbergs so this review is from an outsideru0026#39;s (non-US) perspective and not political.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eRoy Cohn was certainly an interesting individual in looks, actions and drive. A man who was gay and Jewish in a time when both would have been pilloried. He proudly declared that he has no assets so the IRD canu0026#39;t get them. Early on in his career (age 26) he oversaw the prosecution and eventual death by electrocution of Julius and Ethyl Rosenberg for treason (or rather conspiracy to commit espionage for the USSR) and much is made of them selling or giving the plans to the atomic bomb to the Soviets. He was an advsior to McCarthy, attorney for the mob and rubbed shoulders with the rich and powerful, Trump being the main target in this documentary.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIt was directed by Ivy Meeropol, a granddaughter of the Rosenbergs which is probably where the issues start. The documentary makes no bones about itu0026#39;s position on Roy Cohn, he is evil and this repeated through out by enemies and so called friends. It alludes to the Rosenbergs being innocent by claiming an unfair trial where lies were used to ensure a guilty verdict. Although no deep dive or proof, just a lot of innuendo and finger pointing. In fact if you listen carefully there is the admission that Julius was guilty to some degree and Ethyl was innocent. This line was not pursued. Unfortunately for the family, both have since been proven guilty through Soviet records and were major suppliers of information.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhat is evident is that this documentaryu0026#39;s main aim was to discredit Roy Cohn in his private life as well as business life despite his success. Salacious rumors and gossip abounded. His involvement with Studio 54, his toyboys were ever present and his grand living despite having no assets. There was a segment on the bank account of one of his lovers (Peter Fraser) where 100 of 1000s of dollars were deposited from RCs business. What a shame this wasnu0026#39;t explored more instead it was labelled money laundering and mentioned no more. He frequently ignored paying bills and wrote notes to his secretary not to pay accounts.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eInterviews with the gay community who u0026#39;sawu0026#39; RC at various gay hotspots and who were only too keen to spill the beans. His friends (none of whom Iu0026#39;ve ever heard of) regaling stories of his tight fistedness with funny stories of items being delivered then reclaimed after non-payment.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eAnd eventually his death from AIDS which he denied having till the end.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eWhere this went wrong in my opinion is that it had an agenda. If he was such good friends with the high and powerful where were the interviews? Who is a friend with an evil man? He had a huge attendance to his birthday party but no one was interviewed. He was with Peter Fraser till the end but no interview (assuming he is still alive). Iu0026#39;m sure RC was a man you didnu0026#39;t trifle with and may even have been thoroughly disreputable, even evil but there was no balance in the u0026#39;documentaryu0026#39;. You just had to take the narrators word for it. The clips were were tied in with the gay scene of New York from the 70s and much was made of his personal life although very little corroborated, gossip aside. What of his business and how he made money? Why was he liked, what did he do for them or what did he have over them. Trump was trotted out as the u0026#39;high and powerfulu0026#39; yet he was also an advisor to Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan and Rupert Murdoch.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThere were too many stories that needed deep diving (Rosenbergs, dealings with the Mafia and his hand in NY contracts to name a few) but the only thing that was explored, maybe too deep was his sexuality. A shame really, he looks to be worthy of a better exploration to really find the man who is Roy Cohn.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eI gave it a 5, it kept me interested and I will do more research and as salacious as the gossip and 70s gay scene was it kept me watching to the end. A 5 for the voyeur in me.”