Examining the unexpected success of Black Sabbath and the clownish
behaviour of their frontman, however, another Ozzy occasionally emerges,
playing hide and seek with the audience: a man that is insecure, maybe even shy,
and finds his only way of facing the world is in a lethal mixture of spotlight,
drugs and alcohol abuse, with the total abandon and naivety only a
twenty-something can show.
When Black Sabbath drop him hoping to break a
vicious circle, Sharon sees fit to throw him in the spotlight again after only
a few months and - as grateful as we can be for the Blizzard of Ozz and Diary
of a Madman album – that’s a hell of a dangerous road to take.
What follows is a whirlwind of doves, bats, snorted ants and
general rockstar behaviour; a gamble with life, an unsafe rollercoaster, yet
our hero seems to enjoy the adrenaline rush. It’s rock’n’roll, it’s all about
living every day like it’s your last after all. Except there are a few kids in
the background at this point, plus an event that is going to turn that
rollercoaster ride into a downward train to hell: the sudden
death of Randy Rhoads, probably the most touching moment in the whole movie.
Life continues in the Osbournes household, a life revolving
around a man permanently standing on the edge of a cliff; ‘a functioning addict’,
as Kelly calls him, living on a delicate balance of booze and drugs, unfamiliar
with concepts like ‘parenting’ and mostly unaware of those around him. The
ideal scenario for a reality show… not.
Sharon’s cancer spell is the final hit for Ozzy, now close
to losing his balance and dragging the kids off the cliff with him. But kids
can sometimes be stronger than a father could ever expect, or maybe just
smarter: and it’s possibly a father-son challenge to pull Ozzy back on the edge
and gradually on safe soil.
And while he steadily drives away – more than Vince Neil can
say – you’re left again with the same, unanswerable question that will forever pop
in our minds when it comes to Ozzy: how the hell is this man still alive…
