Back in 2019, the disaster that was the infamous Fyre Festival lit up everyone’s WhatsApp groups, thanks to Netflix’s hit documentary. Three years later, the streamer is revisiting the ‘festivals gone wrong’ genre with its three-part documentary Trainwreck: Woodstock ‘99 – and it’s even more outrageous. When young Americans’ hatred for the Vietnam War combined with the challenges faced by the civil rights movement in the 60s, Woodstock music festival became a symbol of peace, love and unity. Three decades later, as gun violence in the US started to worsen in the late 90s, holding another festival to promote these values seemed like a good idea – but as this documentary details, the organisers couldn’t have been more wrong.
“Knowing how influential Woodstock ‘69 is in musical history, I was surprised I didn’t already know that first off, there was even another Woodstock, but secondly, just how disastrous it was,” says Stylist Loves writer Kiran Meeda. “Even with a line-up including Sheryl Crow, Willie Nelson, Red Hot Chilli Peppers and Limp Bizkit, this festival was a mess in every sense. Commercialised at every opportunity, it was rife with rape and orgies, with no system for clean sanitation and candles used to start widespread fires in crowds. As the festival went on and the state of facilities worsened, crowds got angry – angry at MTV who were covering the event, angry at each other and angry at the big-name artists on stage. The more you watch, the more your jaw will be on the floor in shock – it makes Fyre look like a toddler’s birthday party gone wrong in comparison.” On Netflix now