There's still so much to discuss after Untold Raygun: Breaking Badly

 

This week, I rushed to Netflix to watch their latest documentary about Australian breakdancer Rachel Gunn and her less than impressive performance at the 2024 Paris Olympics, as I was desperate to learn what lead to the now many memes from the competition.

I have a low bar for Netflix’s documentaries despite their consistent viewership and control over the cultural conversation. The latest Untold Documentary, adds to my belief that Netflix documentaries are shallow and are created too quickly to offer critical insight.

Barely two years removed from the Olympics we have a brief look into the story of Raygun; how she qualified for the Olympics and when it all really fell apart.

Although described by her parents as someone who was confident, Rachel didn’t feel that she’d fully found herself until embracing breakdance, where she could rebel against what she had been told a woman should be. 

From watching the summer Olympics, many thought that Rachel had no dance background. 

The tid bits of dancing we see in the documentary wouldn’t dissuade the critics however, one of her fellow competitors from the Olympic qualifiers, briefly admits Rachel was the best on the day, albeit of a very small group.

Upon qualfitying she then begins the hard task of getting herself to an Olympic standard. Professional athletes usually have a 4 year cycle to get themselves ready to compete at such a high level, Rachel instead only had nine months. Nine months to get an urban sport to gold medal standard. 

Perhaps the documentary would’ve been stronger had it taken a moment to detail how difficult it was to get a sport that was previously on the periphery, ready for the Olympics. 

Rachel and Sammy, her husband, coach and fellow breakdancer, did have a somewhat sensible plan - build Rachel’s strength for power moves, compete against international competition to see her standard and practice until you bleed.

Very quickly they discovered Raygun was miles behind her competition. The rigorous training also put a strain on Rachel’s physical and mental health. So they changed the plan, from power moves to putting Australia first and using dance moves that showed their culture.

When Raygun got to Paris she didn't score any points in her first two rounds of competition. In an attempt to go out swinging, she pulled out the big guns and showcased moves like the sprinkler and Kangaroo to the Place de la Concorde audience. And those moves did capture the attention but of viewers online who found them laughable. 

Interestingly, Rachel nor her husband seem to be largely embarrassed or disappointed with her performance. Even recreating the moves the documentary. The pair seem to lack self awareness. At no point do they consider that her performance may have made breakdance’s inaugural appearance at the Olympics a laughing stock. 

This is where I believe more time between the viral event and the creation of this doc would’ve been beneficial. Potentially in five more years Rachel would be more regretful of her performance, perhaps she would’ve considered her impact as white Australian woman on dance category that was built on New York street culture. 

The documentary ends on Rachel attemtping to pivoting the ordeal into event that has allowed her to grow her confidence and inspire people including Richard Branson, oddly enough. But ultimately highlights she's not at all ready to have the tough conversations yet.