Trailer For 'Bright Lights' Is Bittersweet

The upcoming HBO documentary from director Mike Nichols, Bright Lights, with its portrayal of a dramatic and deeply loving family would be a tearjerker even if the characters the documentary put under the spotlight hadn't died tragically at the end of December 2016. But with the subsequent deaths of the mother/daughter pair, Debbie Reynolds and Carrie Fisher, the bond between the two women is even more engaging and yes, heartbreaking, to see. In a beautiful but heart-wrenching trailer for Bright Lights, which follows the women from 2014 to 2015, we catch a glimpse at the strong connection between these iconic actors. The documentary premiered at Cannes in 2016 and is now set for release on HBO's streaming services Jan. 7, 2017.

Be sure to have a bunch of tissues handy because from the trailer, it seems like there's going to be lots of laughter brought on by the witty repartee between these members of Hollywood royalty — which may then swiftly be followed by devastation at the realization that they are gone. Fisher was flying from London on Dec. 23 when she had a heart attack and was removed from her flight. She died three days later. Her mother, Debbie Reynolds had a stroke the day after her daughter's death, on Dec. 27 and died soon after. It was a terrible series of events, and one that makes Bright Lights even more of an intense watch.

In the trailer, the squabbling between the two women is so clearly inspired from a place of love and is not only a hilarious thing to see, but something many of us can identify with. As soon as Fisher starts ripping into her mother for still owning a cell phone that comes from "when they first invented cell phones" and Reynolds retorts, "it works just dandy," it becomes clear this film is going to bring a bunch of empathetic chuckles (who hasn't criticized a parent for their technology flaws?) as well as some serious sads (nine of ten viewers will pause to go give a family member or loved one a call).

The trailer is also chock full of the sort of honest and sarcastic quips that made Fisher more than just a Space Princess — she mocks the Star Wars franchise by claiming she's working on "Stars Wars Seven...ty-two" and tells her mother, "that's what's good about losing your memory, there's so many surprises."

It's horribly sad that these women passed, but at least their memories are immortalized in their work, and now, in Bright Lights.

You can watch the trailer here.

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