Broadway Baby

Well, we made it through, Christmas at least. I hope it was everything you wanted it to be. My Christmas was excellent. The gift of shopping in the form of shoes, clothes and lingerie. Oh my. And let me not forget movies. I saw Dreamgirls the day after Christmas. Believe me I would have been there opening day but there was something about Christmas and spending time with J and family. Blah, blah, blah.

Dreamgirls tells the story of a 60s Supreme-esque girl group lead by the diva Effie (Jennifer Hudson) and supported by beautiful Deena (Beyonce Knowles) and cheerful Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose). The Dreamettes are taken under the wing of relentless manager Curtis (Jamie Foxx) and given the job as back-up singers to legendary James ‘Thunder’ Early (Eddie Murphy). The film follows the winding path to stardom and despair as talented Effie is pushed aside for the more marketable Deena.

Dreamgirls doesn’t disappoint. Visually it is a dream. The costumes and choreography take you back to the glittery gold of Motown where girl and boy groups reigned supreme. I wasn’t bored once and my mind didn’t wander which meant it held my attention. I didn’t think once about what I had to do afterwards.

The casting was another dream. While waiting for the film to start, I looked at the diverse audience and realized Dreamgirls is marketing heaven. It appeals to many audiences – those who appreciate black cinema (okay the black folks), the art house crew that follows award nominations, jazzhands (the Broadway set) and popular culture heads (Beyonce and Jamie Fox are hot right now) –essentially me. I fall into all of those categories.

It’s difficult to watch a movie that has a lot of buzz, which is why I needed to see it before the masses and my friends. Everything seems like a disappointment after the hype. This I know for sure. Jennifer Hudson is electric not because of her acting. She does the big sassy black girl better than most but that’s not a stretch since that is built into every black woman I know. The role is written better and more developed than the other characters. It’s a star-making role.

Her strength is her voice and dignity. Her version of ‘And I Am Telling You’ is Acting 101. What she achieves through this song is short of a miracle. Up until this point in the film I was under whelmed but hoping for more and I got it. I was in tears at the end as the rest of the audience broke into applause. Even the little old white ladies next to me were clapping. She didn’t reach Jennifer Holiday depth but she fought like hell to make it her own. I don’t think she has a long lasting career as an actress but she’ll be around as a vocalist if she can resist the temptation to enter Top 40 pop/hip hop hell.

Jamie Foxx is great as the bad guy. He’s a mix of Barry Gordy and Ike Turner. I’m on the fence about Eddie Murphy. He has great charm and surprising range as an aging soul singer but I don’t know if it holds up to other performances this year but it’s a personal best that will boost his profile and lead him to more diverse roles. He could become one of these comedians who develop into an amazing dramatic actor ala Tom Hanks and Robin Williams.

I’m going to be honest here in the most direct way. Beyonce cannot act. She’s beautiful, hardworking and talented but even her voice has a limited range. I respect the fact that she’s a nice girl. She sings, writes and produces music. I get that but she’s can’t act. She was everything this role called for unbelievable beauty, that’s about it. Very Diana Ross in Mahogany not Lady Sings the Blues. She never reaches outside her limited acting range to bring more humanity to her character because she can’t. Even her song of independence ‘Listen’ (which she co-wrote) was screechy and trite. It lacked a subtle beginning and the powerful ending. It was all power and little pitch.

Beyonce must have seen the parallels between her character and her real life. Replace Curtis with her father. I’m not hating on her. I’m just a realist. She is a figment of clever marketing and public relations. You can believe that her father was adamant that she be co-writer on the new songs for the movie. Thus, getting her a nomination for Academy Award as well as a performance. Brilliant!

I have to say it was great to see black people on the screen without shooting each other, speaking Ebonics or with their pants falling down dripping in bling. It’s an important movie for African-Americans and keeping the musical alive.

What did you think of Dreamgirls?