|
It's about as far from a "standard" biopic - where we go from Event A to Event B, then to Event C, etc. - as you can get.
The storytelling is rather... elliptical. Well, non-linear. That's the best word I can use to describe it. People are most likely going to be pissed, and we'll probably have some articles detailing what was missing, as well as a couple of possible "think pieces" about how "they" decided to "whitewash" James Brown. Which isn't actually true. Anyway, yes, the movie starts with the 1988 car chase, but from there the story time-jumps all over the place from event to event, until a theme eventually emerges. Exactly what that theme was, I couldn't really tell you. Although I think it has something to do with James' abandonment issues, starting from when he was a little boy. For me, it's going to take a second viewing to see if I can further suss it out.
Performance-wise, I thought Chadwick Boseman nailed James Brown, Nelsan Ellis was cool as his sidekick Bobby Byrd. Dan Aykroyd was okay as a manager. Jill wasn't in the thing for very long. Neither was Black Thought. Aloe Blacc had more screen time than BT. I also thought that Viola and Octavia were wasted, Octavia especially.
But then again, I don't really think I should be complaining that much about actors flitting in and out of the movie, because that was the point: everybody goes in and out of JB's life until eventually, they die, get fired from the band, or quit. The way this is told naturally means that a LOT of things are going to be left out of the story, and causes me to ask questions about what remained. I mean, in one sense I understand the need to include the T.A.M.I. Show event, where a pissed-off, competitive, and highly-motivated James led his band through a blistering performance because the Rolling Stones, and not him, was closing the show. But did we really need the brief moment where he leaves the stage and says something to a young version of (Get on Up producer) Mick Jagger?
I dunno. I guess I admired the concept more than I completely dug the final product. But there's a lot of good stuff in here.
___________________________________________________________________________________________ Gender Coons Gotta Go
|