[Dixielandjazz] Bessie Smith film reviewed - Denver Post, May 15, 2015 - Minneapolis Star-Tribune, May 15, 2015

[Robert Ringwald]

Queen Latifah Triumphs in HBO Bessie Smith Biopic


by Joanne Ostrow

Denver Post, May 15, 2015


“Bessie” is a beautifully affecting biopic about the tragic and glorious life of blues pioneer Bessie Smith, showcasing a gutsy, soul- and flesh-baring performance by Queen Latifah in the title role.


Premiering May 16, the HBO Films original includes tremendous re-enacted musical numbers -- from the black vaudeville stage and rural tent shows to early recording studios -- that capture the essence of the soulful struggle. Smith’s defiance beams through the blues.


But it’s the still, silent moments in which Latifah is most in command, conveying the depths of Smith’s sorrows and determination nakedly, literally and metaphorically.


Portraying the strong, large woman of outsize appetites -- sexual, material, gustatory and more -- Latifah imbues the singer with power. She can knock out a predatory male, belt out a soulful number, down a jar of gin and take lovers of either sex without missing a beat, all while enduring flashbacks to an abusive childhood.


The film’s tone is admiring but unvarnished, less literal than impressionistic, offering examples of the institutional racism of the times along with Smith’s disregard of any obstacle or convention. Her swagger, tough business negotiations and bisexual relationships are plainly depicted, along with her cruel treatment as a motherless girl at the hands of her older sister Viola, played by Khandi Alexander (“Scandal,” “Treme”). 


The idea that she overcompensated for early abuse by fighting her way to stardom is suggested, but not overworked.


Clearly it’s a labor of love for all involved to give the 1920s superstar and “Empress of the Blues” her due and introduce her to a new generation of music fans. After years of production attempts, the film is a shared triumph for Latifah and Dee Rees (“Pariah”), who co-wrote the screenplay and story (screenplay with Christopher Cleveland and Bettina Gilois, story with the late Horton Foote).


Some of the film’s best moments are built on the conflicted, then collegial relationship of Bessie and Ma Rainey. Mo’Nique (“Precious”) excels as blues legend and Smith rival/mentor Rainey, “Mother of the Blues,” although her vocals are dubbed.


The cast includes Michael Kenneth Williams (“Boardwalk Empire,” “The Wire”) as Bessie’s husband, Jack; Mike Epps (“The Hangover,” “Soul Men”) as Richard, a bootlegger and romantic interest; Tika Sumpter (“Ride Along,” “Sparkle”) as Lucille, a performer and her longtime lover; and Bryan Greenberg (“Friends with Benefits,” “How to Make It in America”) as record producer and music critic John Hammond.


The portrait of Smith that emerges is a pre-feminist-era feminist, a pre-civil-rights-era champion of black pride, one who flipped the Theater Owners Booking Association’s infamous brown-paper-bag test on its head.


Smith, observing that the TOBA really stood for “tough on black a----,” she demanded that anyone auditioning for her troupe be darker -- not lighter -- than the bag. 

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Queen Latifah Hits a Few Flat Notes in ‘Bessie’


by Neal Justin

Minneapolis Star-Tribune, May 15, 2015


Queen Latifah has not been a force on the hip-hop charts in years, she’s box-office poison on the big screen and is reeling from two failed talk shows. But the woman has not lost her swagger.


In the opening scenes for “Bessie,” a long-awaited bio-pic of 1920s-30s blues sensation Bessie Smith that premieres Saturday on HBO, Latifah struts her stuff like she’s Beyoncé, Barbra Streisand and Britney Spears all rolled into one toxic package.


If only the movie could swing with equal confidence.


Despite Latifah’s gallant efforts, writer/director Dee Rees tones down the singer’s amazing career, providing viewers a somewhat flat-noted version of what was certainly a full-throated career.


Perhaps the producers never really grasped the heartbreak embodied in early blues music. It’s a dilemma the script (adapted from a story by Rees and Horton Foote) hints at in a scene involving Bessie’s future mentor, Ma Rainey (played by Oscar winner Mo’Nique), who chastises Bessie for not being “black” and soulful enough to become part of her troupe.


Latifah had to learn that lesson for herself, in fact. She admits that when she was first approached about the role more than 20 years ago, she was too focused on rap to fathom the power of the blues.


“When this project first came my way, I didn’t think I have had the life journey that went along with what Bessie had gone through,” said Latifah, who admitted she had never even heard of the blues legend when she was in her 20s. “I could have played her then and done a great job, but through my life experience, I’ve got to live more of the blues.


“For her to command a room, a room with no audio equipment, and blow out everybody in the back of the room -- I mean, [the music] may be a hundred years old, but it has a power that a lot of artists could learn from today. If there was a Bessie Smith out there right now, she’d blow everybody out of the water today.”


History backs up Latifah’s boast; the film doesn’t.


There are certain musical moments that capture the tenor of the time, particularly when Rainey and Bess set aside their popular standards and face the cold hard facts: sexism, poverty, stingy managers and, of course, racism.


“The blues really became the first way that people could begin to talk about these issues and make them personal,” Rees said.


That may be the case, but “Bessie” spends more time showing the singer threatening lovers, cutting up suitors and lambasting auditioners than she does demonstrating how the power of her voice could change the world. While the musical performances are impressive, they don’t convey a sense of the troubled times.


Consider this a decent night of karaoke, and little more.
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