Saw this last week (for the wife, you know!) For my money, the best movie
about Blacks in the music biz is still Robert Townsend's "The Five Heartbeats",
but "Dreamgirls" is a fun flick. Very good, entertaining movie. Kinda light and
fluffy like a marshmellow, but that's okay. The following is my review,
published at the website "Playahata". Go to www.playahata.com, click on "Movie
Reviews" at the top, and look for the movie in the alphabetized list. Be
warned: the site itself can be kinda raw in language at times, but it's not too
bad. (Hey, I'm sure Shakespeare had to drop some hip-hip reviews before he got
his big break
too!)
You can also find my reviews of "Stranger than Fiction" and "Crank" (awful,
awful movie!) at the site.
Dreamgirls Category: Drama, Musical/Performing Arts and Adaptation
Rating: PG-13 for language, some sexuality and drug content.
Run Time: 2 hr 05 min.
Starring: Beyonce Knowles, Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover, Jennifer
Hudson
Directed by Bill Condon
Produced by Patricia Whitcher, Laurence Mark
Written by: Bill Condon (screenplay), Tom Eyen (source)
Distributed by Paramount Pictures, DreamWorks SKG
Release Date: December 25th, 2006
Synopsis: Effie White, Deena Jones, and Lorrell Robinson - three friends from
Chicago - are a promising singing trio called The Dreamettes. Accompanied by
their songwriter C.C. White (Effie's brother), they travel to New York to
compete in a talent show at the Apollo Theatre. Although the girls lose this
first bid for fame, their talent attracts an ambitious manager by the name of
Curtis Taylor, Jr., who uses unscrupulous tactics to move the girls from backup
singers of superstar James "Thunder" Early to superstars of their own. Curtis
reshapes the group to "crossover" from R & B to the lucrative pop music scene.
Lead singer Effie gets replaced by the more attractive Deena and is eventually
dropped from the trio. The group evolves into a more sophisticated group, The
Dreams, with a lighter sound and chic look. They successfully attract a
"whiter" audience and The Dreams rise to international stardom. The money,
fame, and adulation, howev er, doesn't bring them happiness.
TsarBernard (a.k.a. Keith Johnson) Says Overall: A
Reviewing Dreamgirls is almost a waste of time. With a stellar cast and
kickin soundtrack, it would succeed whether critics hated or loved it. People
expect it to be good, period. And theyd be right. This is a fun, moving,
toe-tapping, hand-clapping, gorgeously produced film.
The movie kicks into high gear from the very first scene. We meet The
Dreamettes, a group of eager young singers competing in a music contest at a
Detroit theatre reminiscent of The Apollo. Though amateurs, they wow the
audience. Through the machinations of car dealer and would-be music mogul
Curtis Taylor (Jamie Foxx in a none-too-secret Barry Gordy impersonation), the
Dreamettes lose the competition, but are saved by Taylor. He gets them hired
singing backup for James Thunder Early, (Eddie Murphy) a James Brown type
whos hot in the R&B world. Everyones excited about the opportunity but Effie,
who doesnt trust Taylor. She relents, however, and soon gives in to Taylors
charms.
You know the rest of the story: Taylor guides the Dreamettes to a successful
career with Early, in time changing their style to one less soulful, but more
palatable to the sought-after white audience. The Dreamettes ultimately become
a group in their own rightthe Dreamsand go on to pop glory. Along the way
theres backstage trysts, manipulations, and backstabbing a-plenty, most
significantly, the replacement of Effie as lead singer by Deena (Beyonce
Knowles). Early deems Effies more stereotypically Black figure, features, and
voice a hindrance to his goal of crossover success. Instead he backs slim,
light-skinned, prettier (at least, to Early) Deena. Early knows Deenas voice
isnt that great, but as he tells her later, its her very blandness that he
likes, as it makes her a blank canvass that he can paint as he wants.
What follows is an enjoyable if predictable flick. Overall this is a class act.
Musical numbers are mostly good. Production values are high across the board,
be it the look of 60s era clubs, or the changing clothing and hair styles worn
by the actors across the years. The actors are all good. Danny Glover makes the
most of a limited supporting role as Earlys first manager. Tony Award winner
Anika Noni Rose shines in a smaller role that could have been lost behind
Knowles and Hudson. Jamie Foxx is fine as the schemer wholl sacrifice anyone
to further his dreams. Beyonce Knowles, arguably the most promoted star of the
film, acquits herself well. Knowles true acting ability is still in question,
but as the movie has as much singing and posing as real acting, shes more than
capable of handling the demands.
The two standouts are just as youve heard. Eddie Murphy takes what could have
been a camp repeat of his Saturday Night Live James Brown impersonation and
gives it true heart and soul. His Early is funny, roguish, arrogant, and
ultimately rather sympathetic. While the role may not be quite the Oscar
caliber performance some suggest, its still amazing. Hopefully this will open
new acting doors for him.
Jennifer Hudson is a treasure. For someone whose main claim to fame was being
kicked off American Idol, shes amazing. Her Effie is at times strong, sassy,
tough, and vulnerable. Hudson says more with expression and body language than
many seasoned actresses with pages of dialogue. An eye roll conveys
exasperation and suspicion; a slight twitch of the lips telegraphs sadness and
longing; head raised high trumpets defiance and resolve. Oh yeah: the girl can
sing too. From R&B songs, to jazzier tunes, to the famous Youre Gonna Love
Me, she nails the songs perfectly.
There are a few nits I could pick. Some of the musical numbers could be a
little longer. The cameras a little hyper in early scenes in an attempt to
further energize the performances. The balancing of singing and dialogue is a
little uneven in the first half, which often feels simply like a musical
transplanted to film, a string of songs connected by some dialogue. The second
half has a better balance, and the films better for it. Its here that the
actors dramatic abilities get to shine and the movie goes from good great.
(This is probably just my preference of more dialogue, and wont even be
noticed by most people).
Perhaps most interesting about Dreamgirls is the irony of the casting itself.
Will Eddie Murphys performance grant him new life as an actor, just as Thunder
Early tries to stay relevant in a changing musical world? Will Jennifer
Hudsonwhose vocal and acting talents surpass Knowlesenjoy the career she
obviously deserves? Or will the more mainstream-appealing Knowles looks and
charm see her become the mega-star of screen as well as stage, just like Deena?
Only time will tell, of course. Nothings certain. What is certain is that
Dreamgirls will please just about everyone.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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