Aiken
November 12, 2021
I watched this movie yesterday on Amazon Prime Video. It is similar to "Ray" in that the film soars whenever the music takes over, as it does for large chunks of the action. But the backstage story is less exhilarating. The first 45 minutes is about her childhood. Talk about a downer! A controlling father, pregnancy at age 12 and 14 -- Aretha dealt with a lot early in her life.
The next hour of the movie is wonderful, documenting how Aretha's career took off after she traveled to Muscle Shoals and recorded music that she wanted to sing. Jennifer Hudson is amazing as Aretha and the interaction of the Muscle Shoals musicians and Aretha is quite moving.
The last 45 minutes of the movie deals less with her music than the diva she became. Success went to her head.
Well worth the $5.99 charge for the rental.
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