Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex is a music documentary directed by Ethan Silverman that explores the life and music of glam‑rock pioneer. Through a combination of archival footage and rare interviews, a cross‑generational array of artists re‑imagine his songs.
The documentary film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2022, and will finally hit U.S. theaters on August 8, 2025 in a limited release, followed by digital/VOD streaming on September 5, 2025.
Here is the synopsis:
AngelHeaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex is a visually rich and musically daring documentary that fluidly moves between 1970s glam-rock stages and 21st-century recording studios.
Directed by Ethan Silverman, the film chronicles the creation of the late Hal Willner’s star-studded tribute album – featuring U2, Nick Cave, Joan Jett, Macy Gray, Father John Misty, and more – while weaving in rare archival performances and interviews with Marc Bolan, Elton John, Ringo Starr, and David Bowie.
Structured “like a musical,” the film uses Bolan’s lyrics to guide a semi-linear journey through his life -from his early friendship with Bowie and his chart-topping glam era, to his untimely death at age 29. Shot across New York, London, Paris, Berlin, New Orleans, and Los Angeles, the film blends vérité rehearsal footage, stylized dream sequences, Super-8 home movies, and glittering Top of the Pops clips into an immersive celebration of Bolan’s gender-fluid swagger, poetic wordplay, and rhythm-driven songwriting- cementing his legacy as one of rock’s most visionary figures.
Director Ethan Silverman commented, “I want to move Marc Bolan from footnote to headline. His fearless gender fluidity, poetic lyricism and rhythmic attack reshaped rock, but history filed him away as a niche British phenomenon. This project began as an album I was filming; it grew into a mixed‑media film that looks backward and forward at once. By treating the story as a musical quilt—live studio vérité, stylised ‘70s texture, and a chorus of modern interpretations—I hope to ignite fresh curiosity and remind audiences that Bolan’s short life pushed the dial forward for everyone who values personal freedom.”
See above, the official trailer for Angelheaded Hipster: The Songs of Marc Bolan & T. Rex.
Release dates
Opens August 8
New York, NY // Roxy Cinemas
Featuring post-film Q&As!
Los Angeles, CA // Lumiere Music Hall
Featuring post-film Q&As!
Boston, MA // Regent Theatre (Aug. 8-10)
Duluth, MN // Zinema 2
Opens August 15
Atlanta, GA // Plaza Theatre
Cleveland, OH // Nightlight Cinema
Gainesville, FL // Hippodrome – Gainesville
Additional Select Screenings
August 11
Albany, NY // Orpheum
August 12
Dallas, TX // Texas Theatre
Los Angeles, CA // Laemmle Monica Film Center (featuring post-film Q&A!); Laemmle Noho; Laemmle Newhall; Laemmle Claremont
August 19
Houston, TX // River Oaks Theatre
August 21
Seattle, WA // Kingston Firehouse Theatre
September 1
Anchorage, AK // Bear Tooth Theatre
September 3
Boulder, CO // Boedecker Theater
Raleigh-Durham, NC // Cary Theatre
September 13
San Francisco, CA // Roxie Theater; Smith Rafael Film Center
On Digital September 5
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