I'm a 28 year old who happens to have an old soul; and LOVE the classic R&B of the 60s, 70s & 80s. Therefore, it was only a matter of time before I watched The Temptations. After watching it, however, I must say that it left a bad taste in my mouth. Obviously, I wasn't around during this time so I don't even have a story/rumor of my own to compare to what's portrayed here. But seeing that Otis Williams is the only surviving original member, that it's based on the book that he wrote, and that he's one of the executive producers of this film...there's a HUGE slant in his favor; making this film very disingenuous.
The other people involved in this story, including Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, and Paul Williams, obviously can't defend themselves or tell their side of the story; so anything shown here has to be taken with a grain of salt. Otis comes off as a complete saint. Oh, okay.....so he cheated on his wife; compared to everybody else's problems that's nothing. Not to trivialize adultery one bit, the image being portrayed here about him being the glue that kept the group together, and him being the level head throughout....I could not help but be VERY skeptical about what I was seeing. I must say that it left a pretty bad taste in my mouth. I know everything about "artistic license" and whatnot, but this is too much. How did Otis know that Paul drove by Hitsville before killing himself? Or that David was at a crack-house, therefore missing the reunion show? His character narrates some of these scenes as if he was a fly on the wall while they were happening. There are a few scenes like this, which just SCREAMS 'bulls_*t'.
I find it basically deplorable that he would slant everything in his favor like this. I find a lot of what's portrayed here hard to believe. As far as him being the anchor of the group; he never sang lead in a song, he was always backup singing and wasn't even that great a dancer. Yet HE calls ALL of the shots and doesn't fall victim to ANY of the pressures of show business (minus adultery)?? Insanity. With all of that said, the acting was brilliant; Leon and Christian Payton especially.
The Temptations' influence on music and inner turmoil alone makes for an intriguing story for a film. Unfortunately for us, we can only get one side of the story, and I for one refuse to swallow this pill; as it just reeks of inaccuracies and self-serving fluff by Otis Williams.
5/10
The other people involved in this story, including Eddie Kendricks, David Ruffin, and Paul Williams, obviously can't defend themselves or tell their side of the story; so anything shown here has to be taken with a grain of salt. Otis comes off as a complete saint. Oh, okay.....so he cheated on his wife; compared to everybody else's problems that's nothing. Not to trivialize adultery one bit, the image being portrayed here about him being the glue that kept the group together, and him being the level head throughout....I could not help but be VERY skeptical about what I was seeing. I must say that it left a pretty bad taste in my mouth. I know everything about "artistic license" and whatnot, but this is too much. How did Otis know that Paul drove by Hitsville before killing himself? Or that David was at a crack-house, therefore missing the reunion show? His character narrates some of these scenes as if he was a fly on the wall while they were happening. There are a few scenes like this, which just SCREAMS 'bulls_*t'.
I find it basically deplorable that he would slant everything in his favor like this. I find a lot of what's portrayed here hard to believe. As far as him being the anchor of the group; he never sang lead in a song, he was always backup singing and wasn't even that great a dancer. Yet HE calls ALL of the shots and doesn't fall victim to ANY of the pressures of show business (minus adultery)?? Insanity. With all of that said, the acting was brilliant; Leon and Christian Payton especially.
The Temptations' influence on music and inner turmoil alone makes for an intriguing story for a film. Unfortunately for us, we can only get one side of the story, and I for one refuse to swallow this pill; as it just reeks of inaccuracies and self-serving fluff by Otis Williams.
5/10