By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3 cats
Director: Taylor Hackford
Starring: Jamie Foxx | Kerry Washington | Regina King
Country: united_states
Year: 2004
Running time: 152
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0350258/combined
Janet says: “‘This film, the story of Ray Charles with Chlotrudis fave Kerry Washington as Ray’s long-suffering wife Bea, has a lot to recommend it although it’s constrained by the usual limitations of the biopic.
“There is that seemingly unavoidable biopic flaw in which the notable characters in the subject’s life are always introducing themselves. ‘Hello, man. Quincy Jones.’ ‘I enjoy your work, Mr. Charles. Here’s my card. My name is Ahmet Ertegun.’ Wouldn’t it be refreshing if just once a big-name character would slip into the movie and NEVER TELL US WHO THEY WERE? What fun at credits time. ‘Oh, my god, that actress was playing Marianne Faithfull!’ Will I live to see the day?
“Flashbacks throughout the film emphasize a heavy-handed spirituality and inspirational message (essentially, ‘Straighten up and fly right’) that seems aimed at very traditional-minded African-American Christians. Shot in warm gold tones suggesting memory,these scenes show Ray’s childhood, the death of his younger brother, and the onset of his blindness. Ray’s mother, a poor but self-respecting washerwoman, works herself into an agitated lather in every scene she’s in; this actress, sort of a long-necked Halle Berry type, was working it so hard I thought she would fall off the screen and into my lap. As a result, I had to suppress a laugh during a funeral scene.
“About halfway through, the movie picks up. I don’t know if they changed directors in midstream or switched to handheld cameras or what. Maybe the script became less stilted. My friend Charline says it’s because the second half has more music. And yes, the performance scenes and recording scenes are superb—painstakingly recreated and magnificently acted. I adored all the women who played Ray’s backup singers, and the male actors playing his managers and musicians are terrif too, although they should have been given tougher material to work with.
“Kerry Washington does well throughout but her role is a little too saintly and perfect to be believable or interesting–it’s that ‘live right’ thing again. I don’t know if I have to tell you that the movie’s position on drugs comes down squarely AGAINST, and that we are treated to a REQUIEM FOR A DREAM-style withdrawal scene that doesn’t fit too well with the rest of
the movie. I can’t evaluate Jamie Foxx’s performance because I’m still not
convinced I wasn’t watching Ray Charles.
“3 cats—do see it if you like his music”
Bruce says: “Frequently – for some strange reason – the biopic screenwriter feels the need to explain the origin of the subject’s behavior and/or talent through some character molding event in childhood. This technique is used in two highly visible 2004 films, RAY and THE AVIATOR. In RAY, Ray Charles Robinson’s mother practices tough love to teach her blind son how to cope with his disability, with his guilt over his brother’s drowning and with his leaving home for a boarding school where he could learn survival skills for the blind and get a decent education. Flashbacks to Ray’s childhood continue throughout most of the film to keep us in suspense, knowing that we might lose interest if all the blanks were filled in at once.
“Taylor Hackford (AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN, EVERYBODY’S ALL-AMERICAN, DOLORES CLAIRBORNE and THE DEVIL’S ADVOCATE) has done a decent storytelling job in the past but innovative he is not. The early scenes in Northern Florida are more fantasyland than reality-based. Many other scenes involve trite set-ups and segue devices such as neon overlays to tell us where the action is taking place (a gimmick also used by Martin Scorsese in THE AVIATOR). The dialogue is clichéd although, to be fair, clichés were a common form of communication for the masses in the 30’s and 40’s.
“RAY depicts the origins and evolution of Ray Charles’ music from his days a the third wheel in the McSon trio to his chart-topping days when he was lauded for integrating R & B, country and gospel into his own pop sound. The film succeeds remarkably on this level. However, the film is overly long and tries to cover too much territory. What is less successful is the attempt to illustrate Ray’s drug addiction, womanizing, dysfunctional home life and Civil Rights activism into the story of his music.
“Jamie Foxx is sensational in the title role although my personal preference is for the acting he did in COLLATERAL where he creates his own character rather than imitates someone else’s behavior. Yes, he has every Ray Charles gesture – the tilt of the head, the wobbly walk, and the all-knowing smile – down pat. Kerry Washington is underused as his neglected wife. Regina King shines as the back-up singer who fuels his fondness for alcohol and drugs and shares his bed when they are on the road. 3 cats”
Barbara responds to Bruce: “We happened to catch this movie last night and your review is right on the mark. I thought the movie was just okay but Jamie Foxx’s performance was fabulous.”