And I Am Telling You I AM Going
I've made it clear I'm sitting out the Oscars this year. After seeing Dreamgirls today because it's been months since I've seen a movie in the cinema, I won't be as crushed as I would have been if Jennifer Hudson does walk off with my Oscar for her first (maybe last?) film performance. It's not all her fault: the editor and director made her showstopper "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" into a cinematic triumph. Watching her continue blasting from her seemingly bottomless pipes after everyone has left the stage, pointing to the empty seats pleading "and you, and you, and you...you're gonna love me!" not only brings well-deserved goosebumps, but even a little bit of...wait...was that a tear?
.
Granted, the rest of her performance is about the same, and it's hard to keep the energy going when the 11 o'clock number happens at 9:30 instead, but that's an issue carried over from the Broadway show. Plus it makes Beyonce's big number, "Listen," sound like a second-rate attempt at the same kind of fervor Hudson carries with a 40-pound advantage. So the film isn't perfect, but a solid few hours of quality entertainment and mind-blowing performances, not just from Hudson and a surprisingly solid Knowles, but also from a (who knew) brilliant Eddie Murphy and a bone-chillingly evil Jamie Foxx, who can play subtle unlike anyone who jumped from Ray Charles to the real world.
.
You're gonna love me...
.
Granted, the rest of her performance is about the same, and it's hard to keep the energy going when the 11 o'clock number happens at 9:30 instead, but that's an issue carried over from the Broadway show. Plus it makes Beyonce's big number, "Listen," sound like a second-rate attempt at the same kind of fervor Hudson carries with a 40-pound advantage. So the film isn't perfect, but a solid few hours of quality entertainment and mind-blowing performances, not just from Hudson and a surprisingly solid Knowles, but also from a (who knew) brilliant Eddie Murphy and a bone-chillingly evil Jamie Foxx, who can play subtle unlike anyone who jumped from Ray Charles to the real world.
.
You're gonna love me...