It's Tough Out There for a Biopic Maker
Author: mukava991 from United States
17 May 2015
A movie about some aspect of Bessie Smith's life is decades overdue, considering the broad cultural shadow she casts. A few episodes of her tumultuous life explored in depth would resonate, but like too many biopics, this one suffers from the creators' attempt to tell the whole story, or most it, and the results are mechanical, predictable and force-fitted into various agendas. Most biopic makers stumble upon these rocks. Their task is difficult.
From the start of "Bessie" we are told five things over and over: Bessie was haunted throughout her life by memories of the mother she lost as a child. Bessie had lesbian dalliances. Bessie loved to drink straight gin, preferably right out of the bootlegger's glass jar. Bessie had a violent temper. Bessie was a fiercely independent, take-charge kind of gal. But the main thing about Bessie that is presented only sporadically and by rote is her distinctive singing and how it came to be that way.
Queen Latifah, who would seem to be a fine choice for this role, does suggest Smith in girth and even in facial features, but despite a strong voice which she tries to adapt to the Smith groove, she never makes us feel the rafters rising as the Smith legend tells us. The only time she approaches the true Smith sound is near the end when hard living had begun to ravage her vocal chords. And in the early scenes Latifah, given her age and physicality, cannot possibly persuade us that she is a young, unformed artist-to-be.
The attempt to demonstrate how she gradually upstaged her mentor, Ma Rainey (played to the hilt by Mo'Nique), is episodic and sketchy, not organic or dramatic; the same goes for the re-enactments of Smith's altercations with members of the high-toned Manhattan art scene in the 1920s and early 1930s. Some good substance is made of her volatile love affairs with men (Michael Kenneth Williams and Mike Epps). But her mid-career slump is presented as with no explanation or cause, other than perhaps the Great Depression.
SPOILER ALERT: Her tragic death (a potential movie in itself) is entirely absent, as "Bessie" ends in mid-air, or mid- road, as we are left with her musings about where she will go next after a picnic with her former bootlegger.
So, a point has been scored for Bessie Smith. It opens a conversation. But more is needed.
*
Author: edwagreen from United States
16 May 2015
*** This review may contain spoilers ***
Queen Latifah totally captured the soul of blues singer Bessie Smith, in this film biography of the legendary singer.The problem with the picture is the disconnection we see throughout. It is not clear regarding the circumstances of the death of Smith's mother, which she is blamed for. Even when Smith visits the cemetery years later, we don't see the monument of the mother.Latifah is excellent in the role. Her singing is tremendous and she comes across as a tough, vulgar, often drunk young woman who knew from an early age what she wanted out of life.
Smith was brash, totally outspoken and not afraid of anything or anyone. We see this when she chased Klan members away while performing in North Carolina.She receives fine support from Monique as Ma Rainey. We see the latter give Smith pointers, only for the two to split when Smith wants more recognition. Years later, when the depression hits, they're suddenly reunited and this apparently opened doors for Bessie.
*
Author: ztr075926 May 2015
*** This review may contain spoilers ***
I'm going to repeat something I saw another user off IMDb say, "LOVED IT!!" I just saw this brand new biopic off HBO GO last night, and it's a winner!
"Bessie" is an HBO TV film about legendary American blues singer Bessie Smith (Queen Latifah), and focuses on her transformation as a struggling young singer into "The Empress of the Blues". Bessie Smith (Queen Latifah) became one of the most popular female recording artists of the 1920s and 1930s as a singer of blues and jazz. This biography follows her life from a young singer from Chattanooga, Tennessee to her success- as well as her trials and tribulations revolving around family, show business, and personal demons.
There is a great scene in the film- *possible SPOILER* which Bessie sums up the difference between Southern and Northern racism. She says that Southerners don't mind how close you are, as long as you don't get too big- and Northerners don't mind how big you get, as long as you don't get too close. What a sad, but true, commentary on the racial divide, which this singer- and her music- made big strides to over-come, that benefit African-American recording artists to this day I think.
And as for Latifah's performance- performer, artist, bi-sexual lover, African-American woman, abused child, addict, etc... let's just say this is the performance of her career no doubt- and watch out at Emmy and Golden Globe-time this coming awards season... Michael K. Williams ("Boardwalk Empire"), Khandi Alexander, Monique and Oliver Platt co- star. And wow!-I saw a writing credit attributed to- Horton Foote!- which I checked out at Wikipedia. Apparently he was involved at a time Columbia Pictures was going to produce this movie way back when in the '80s I think..??- before the Zanucks (2 of the films' executive producers) took this project over in the early '90s.
*
The year was 1972 and the challenge for director Sidney J. Furie was how to translate the biography of Billie Holliday into something that had "bite" for the mainstream.He succeeded, in large part by his decision to make the story as much about the music as the personal travails of the famous singer.At the time it seemed the obvious choice. Yet, flash forward 43 years and today the team behind this project, faced with the exact same choice, took the road less travelled.
It is not as if Queen L. does not have a set of pipes. After years of appearing in a string of "commodity" lifetime/lifestyle/X-mas movies -- in parts which leveraged off her infectious natural sweetness -- she stunned audiences worldwide with her performance of I KNOW WHERE I've BEEN in 2007.(For the record, how perfect was she in that performance?? This reviewer has that song in every mix he owns and never gets tired of it. Her performance was so flawless that she could have won IDOL on that single track alone.)
This is a hard film to review. A lot of talent behind the camera, a lot of talent in front of the camera, and all of it hamstrung by the executive decision to downplay the music and focus on the strife.Larger than life people have larger than life problems. But we already knew that. Personally, I missed the tunes.
*
A Basket Full of Emmys
Author: rossini-1868 from United States
18 May 2015
The camera has a love affair with Queen Latifah from beginning to end in this tour de force, a performance that may have been worthy of an Oscar, let alone the Emmy she is destined to receive. The movie was co-executive produced by the late Richard Zanuck, based on a story by the late Oscar winning screenwriter Horton Foote, and their posthumous talent is impressively displayed at every level.
The screenplay was smart enough not to try and convert the audience to liking the blues, which is always an acquired taste, instead focusing on the intense drama that was this woman's personal life, from childhood traumas (i.e. being chased by her older sister with a knife), to lesbian love affairs as a grown woman. Thanks mainly to Queen Latifah's amazing performance, a basketful of Emmys should be in the future for this bold and seriously worthy TV drama.
*
Author: zif ofoz from United States
23 May 2015
Bessie is a nicely produced flick about 'Bessie Smith the singer' with a little suggestion of 'Bessie Smith the person' sprinkled throughout the story. At movies end you don't feel you know something about her outside of her remarkable singing.
There are scenes of her rise from rags to riches and the family she tries to make but that's all you get through brief scenes and then it's back to her as a singer.
This isn't a bad movie, it's entertaining and Queen Latifah pulls out all the stops as Bessie the singer. But the ending leaves you pretty much where you were when you started the movie as far as Bessie the person is portrayed.
*
Author: japonaliya from United States
21 May 2015
*** This review may contain spoilers ***
(spoilers)
OK. this is going to be the shortest review you have ever read.....
How can one take this movie seriously when Bessie Smith's greatest song. "Nobody Knows You" (When You're Down and Out" isn't in the movie!!!!!!!!!(or did I sleep through it?)I first heard of Bessie Smith through the John Hammond sessions sparked by The 1960's Spencer Davis Group's version of the song, sung by Stevie Winwood. Maybe it was a copyright thing like in the Jimi Hendrix bio, but I doubt it as the song is so old. This would be like the George Gershwin Story without Rhapsody in Blue! Or Billy Holiday bio without Strange Fruit! Finally, this quote from Wiki:
"Bessie Smith recorded the song with instrumental accompaniment, including a small trumpet section. When Smith's record was released on September 13, 1929 (a Friday), the lyrics turned out to be oddly prophetic. The New York stock market had reached an all-time high less than two weeks earlier, only to go into its biggest decline two weeks later in the Wall Street Crash of 1929, which signaled the beginning of the ten-year Great Depression.
Bessie Smith's "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" became one of her biggest hits, but was released before "race records" were tracked by record industry publications, such as Billboard magazine.
*******Today, it "more than any other, is the song that most people associate with Bessie Smith".[3]******
Q.L was fine as an actress. she can sing and did a reasonable Smith impression, but when all is said and done (according to THIS HBO movie, nothing much happens to Bessie, esp compared to Billy Holiday, or Ray Charles etc. etc Lost her mother, raised by a tyrannical older sister, otherwise not much real drama. The only nod to the dramatic is when her husband leaves her and takes their adopted son away, and of course the haunted locked refrigerator!!Not very much the scheme of things to sing the blues about
