As seen in the new documentary Come See Me in the Good Light (Apple TV), about renowned spoken word poet Andrea Gibson (1975-2025), it’s clear that they (preferred pronoun) often and regularly wrote about their own mental health struggles, which included long-term depression and anxiety. Mainly, though, the film focuses on how they dealt with the cancer that ultimately took their life at age 49.
Come See Me in the Good Light was directed by Ryan White; among the executive producers are such notables as Tig Notaro, Sara Bareilles, Brandi Carlile, Glennon Doyle, Abby Wambach, and Kevin Nealon.
Sarah Burke, them.us, further describes Andrea Gibson and the documentary: “…a rockstar within the slam poetry scene for decades, performing witty, gut-wrenching, cathartic pieces about gender, heartbreak, depression, and queer politics in sold-out venues across the country. But Good Light meets them in a very different place: At home, years into fighting ovarian cancer, and grappling with the reality that soon, that cancer would likely kill them. Via intimate moments with their partner, fellow poet Megan Falley, we see Gibson through the emotional rollercoaster of undergoing chemotherapy, performing their final live show, and doing their best to live every moment like it’s their last. ”
Gibson’s perception of issues that were most likely rooted in their childhood trauma changed immensely with the cancer diagnosis. The message they told Ayana Young, forthewild.world, and similarly stated in the documentary: “…I almost felt most of my anxiety and panic and dis-ease would just fall off me immediately. And it took me some time to really integrate why that was and I can now look back and see that it largely had to do with the fact that just as soon as I was diagnosed, I had almost this new way of seeing where I could see that I wasn’t separate from anything or anyone in this universe. And there was something about feeling that I was no longer a loner—like there was no more ‘loner Andrea’.”
The Trailer
Selected Film Descriptions/Reviews (a rare 100% on Rotten Tomatoes)
Tim Grierson, Screen Daily: “…an emotional viewing experience that was completed before Gibson’s passing, its moving centrepiece the poet’s long-term loving relationship with fellow writer Megan Falley.”
Jourdain Searles, Hollywood Reporter: “Come See Me in the Good Light wants to be life-affirming more than anything else, especially for artists in queer and marginalized communities.”
Stephanie Merry, Washington Post: “…tenderly captures Gibson’s new normal of living with a deadly disease and awakening to ‘the brevity of it all.’ But the movie is more than an admonition for the living; it’s also an achingly bittersweet love story about caregiving.”
Peyton Robinson, rogerebert.com: “As they check the progression of the cancer every three weeks, make crude jokes about potential cures, or view themselves through an iPhone’s aging filter, there’s a hopeful sentimentality that underlines their journey through the trenches…Not running to or from grief, but living deeply and feeling their way through every ebb and flow, creating a desired path in the face of helplessness.”
Matthew Creith, The Wrap: “White excels at presenting his subjects with warmth and humor even in times of despair. Humor, in fact, is at the center of this documentary, which unfolds with radiance.”
