The Man Behind Hollywood’s Darkest Mysteries: Coroner To The Stars Film Review
Still from Coroner To The Stars.
Dr. Thomas Noguchi was never a name I was familiar with. I knew the names of stars like Marilyn Monroe, John Belushi, Janis Joplin, Natalie Wood, and Sharon Tate. But what do Dr. Noguchi and all those celebrities have in common? Well, Dr. Noguchi did autopsies on every one of them. Unexpected deaths of big celebrities have always intrigued me, from Princess Diana to Jayne Mansfield, I feel like I know every gritty detail, and usually the main details come from the autopsies. Seeing Coroner to the Stars, directed by Ben Hethcoat & Keita Ideno, pop up on the lineup for CUFF.Docs was a treat. Sure, I didn’t know who Dr. Noguchi was, but I wanted to learn, and boy did I learn. As an Asian from Tokyo in the 1950’s Dr. Noguchi wasn’t overly accepted in the United States, Americans were still reeling from Pearl Harbour and the after effects of WWII (as was the rest of the world), and this put Dr. Noguchi in quite a rough position; people not wanting to give him an opportunity as a doctor due to deep seated racism that had persisted for years. Despite this, he was eventually appointed as Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner in the city of angels, though it was not an easy job. He speaks to this in Coroner to the Stars and the difficulties he had with his bosses and their attempts to undermine him, hinting at it being due to racism. He had been accused of speaking to the media too freely, telling them details of autopsies that he shouldn’t have, and saying things that would put the rumour mill into overdrive regarding celebrity deaths.
Of course I went into this film wanting to know more about the deaths of some of the world's biggest stars, but what I got was far more intricate, the story of a man who determined their causes of death, and who did the hard investigative work to get to the conclusion. Coroner to the Stars dives deep into the cultural atmosphere that had a grip on the lives of celebrities during Dr. Noguchi’s time as Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner, the systematic racism he experienced at the hands of his superiors, and the politics within Los Angeles that influences the events of Dr. Noguchi’s career. In addition to being quite brilliant at his job he helped pave the way for people of colour and different sexualities to be welcomed into the profession, hiring the first Black female coroner investigator, the first queer coroner investigator and the first Latin-American coroner investigator. Dr. Noguchi’s story is one of importance, perseverance, and strength in the face of mounting adversity. Being able to hear from Dr. Noguchi himself throughout this documentary truly gives audiences insight into what it was like to be the Chief Medical Examiner-Coroner for the sprawling city of Los Angeles, and the stories he shares are ones that shows people his true nature: a man who just wanted to do his job to the best of his abilities. Be sure to add this to your list of films to watch during CUFF.Docs, you won’t regret it.