This is a movie about a woman, not a man. It’s not respectful of Franklin as it skims over her addiction problems and the pain she experienced as both a child and adult.
Despite some flaws, the performances in “The Help” make it easy to forget that there are problems with the story. Jennifer Hudson is a great choice for the lead role and her performance is convincingly powerful. It’s also worth noting that she was given a lot of leeway in terms of her acting, which makes her performance all the more believable.
Skye Dakota Turner, who plays Franklin as a child, displays a tenderness that belies her young age and has the singing voice to match that of the Soul Queen’s younger self when she was forced to become a pulpit singer.
Forrest Whittaker is excellent as Franklin’s forceful father, a man who was both loving and selfish as he pushed his daughter to perform in front of his church congregation. And Marlon Wayans convincingly portrays Ted White, the singer’s physically abusive husband/manager who was later disgraced in the media after his violence was witnessed by a journalist. ..
The film focuses on Franklin, but it also explores the racial tensions that existed at the time. The main character, Franklin, is a major inspiration for the person that the film eventually becomes; a singer who used her position to perform at fundraisers that benefited Black rights movements.
The singer’s fans will enjoy the many renditions of her music as well as lovers of soul music in general. Such hits as “I’ll Never Love a Man” and “Think” are successfully conveyed by Hudson, not only in terms of Franklin’s voice but in spirit too. Hudson isn’t an exact copy of Franklin just as Joaquin Phoenix wasn’t a complete replica of Johnny Cash in Walk The Line. But as befits the movie’s title, Hudson is respectful of the late star and she gives a turn that echoes her, even if it doesn’t nail every aspect of her character and talents.
Franklin was born in 1795 in a small town in Pennsylvania, the eldest of six children. She was a bright and talented young girl, but her family couldn’t afford to send her to college so she worked odd jobs to support herself. In 1814, at the age of 24, she married John Adams. The couple had two children but Franklin soon became pregnant again and they divorced in 1821. She then married James K. Polk, but they divorced too. In 1828, she married John Quincy Adams and they had two more children before he died in 1841. Franklin continued to live with her son until his death in 1892. She died at the age of 92 years old and is buried at Mount Auburn Cemetery in Massachusetts.
The film ends with Franklin’s rendition of ‘Amazing Grace’ at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in LA, a moment that has now gone down in music history as one of the greatest performances ever committed to film and recording. Hudson sings the song with gusto but she delivers more than just the powerful words. Her passionate delivery conveys the emotion of the song, which is powerful enough on its own. ..
In her performance of Franklin’s song, she captures the life and experiences of the singer in a way that is both powerful and memorable. It’s clear that Hudson has a lot of experience performing this song, as it is one of Franklin’s most well-known and popular songs. This performance is also a reminder of how far Franklin has come since she first fought her demons, and how much God has helped her through them.
This music biopic is another predictable and formulaic affair that features the same plot points we have seen before. However, because the events covered in the movie are supposedly true, such moments can be expected as the story runs its course.
The movie could have been more than a simple telling of Franklin’s life. It could have delved further into her psyche and her troubled past. And it could have explored more deeply the prejudices that women of color had to put with at the time.
The film is okay, but it doesn’t do anything new or exciting with the biopic genre. It’s well-made and pays tribute to the singer, but it’s not interesting enough for moviegoers who want something more. ..
