Review: HBO's 'The Invisible Pilot' Humorous and Revealing

HBO's three-part documentary "The Invisible Pilot" begins like a Friday night 20/20 murder mystery investigation, then builds into a wild ride that eventually leads to President Ronald Reagan.

The series chronicles daredevil crop duster Gary Betzner, the best pilot in Hazen, Arkansas, population 1400. He flew "like a butterfly," and even when his water-buzzing antics caused 11 crashes, he still walked away with barely a scratch, much to the relief of his second wife Sally, son Travis, and daughter Sara Lee, all interviewed throughout the film. Gary had said that "crop dusting is total freedom in flying, where you can do whatever you want."

In 2009, Travis's friend Craig Hodges started a documentary about Gary's unusual story, which producer Adam McKay and Emmy-winning directors Phil Lott and Ari Mark picked up and moved along, so clips from family, friends, the "Dixie mafia," and law enforcement span the last decade. But why are the police involved? Because Gary, who some said exhibited multiple personalities, jumped off a local bridge on September 18, 1977 – or so it seemed at the time.

This "seriously conservative" section of the Bible Belt was stymied by conflicting reports of Gary's death and the lack of a body, even after cops dragged the White River for months. There were other inconsistencies in Gary's disappearance, fueled by gossip in the small town and Gary's gregarious, yet mysterious, rock star demeanor. The family had already endured trauma and death, as four relatives had recently died, and Gary's two kids remember the stigma at school of having a dead father. Gary left no will and requested no funeral, so there was no closure for his current family, nor for his first wife and their daughter.

A year before his disappearance, Gary went to Alaska to seek flying work for pipeline projects. He started smoking pot there, then taking harder drugs to relieve painful gout in his feet. He also hauled whiskey to sell to oil workers out in the middle of nowhere. Sally was anti-drug until she got high herself, and the two of them also learned self-hypnosis from a professional hypnotist. They returned to Arkansas, but their friends distanced themselves due to the couple's new drug use.

That's about all that can be shared, because this story has plot twists aplenty, global travel, and political intrigue, which are as much as surprise to the modern viewer as to neighbors and federal officials at the time. The piece is peppered with humor, social commentary, and jump cuts, as to be expected from a McKay project.

"The Invisible Pilot" series premieres April 4 on HBO.