Recently I saw a great TV series, Genius: Aretha Franklin, which offered the width and breadth of Aretha Franklin, showing the myriad experiences that made her who she became.
The Genius series was ambitious with its shifting time and harsh moments, but Respect is a more traditional biopic, with many of the edges sanded off. It's not that there aren't good moments - Aretha creating in the studio or putting on a fabulous show can be electrifying - it's just that those moments aren't used to build anything. Genius suggested that Aretha's life was worth telling because she was interesting, Respect tells you Aretha's life is worth telling because, well, she's famous, and people like to learn about famous people.
Jennifer Hudson is excellent. Respect makes you wish you could go back in time and see Aretha in concert in a way Genius didn't. But in the end there's a "so what" quality to the endeavor.
The Genius series was ambitious with its shifting time and harsh moments, but Respect is a more traditional biopic, with many of the edges sanded off. It's not that there aren't good moments - Aretha creating in the studio or putting on a fabulous show can be electrifying - it's just that those moments aren't used to build anything. Genius suggested that Aretha's life was worth telling because she was interesting, Respect tells you Aretha's life is worth telling because, well, she's famous, and people like to learn about famous people.
Jennifer Hudson is excellent. Respect makes you wish you could go back in time and see Aretha in concert in a way Genius didn't. But in the end there's a "so what" quality to the endeavor.