Respect

Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, didn't get to see her biopic, Respect. But she approved Jennifer Hudson to play her in it. The end result sees theatre director Liesl Tommy in her film debut realizing a script by Tracey Scott Wilson and Callie Khouri. Let's see how it is.

Aretha (Skye Dakota Turner as a kid) starts out as the daughter of Minister C.L. Franklin (Forrest Whitaker), who shows off her singing talents to Black music royalty. Her childhood isn't easy; a few incidents include her mother, Barbara's (Audra McDonald) sudden death, her parents' quarrelling and an encounter that leaves her pregnant far too early. Eventually, she's singing to her father's parishioners. She meets and falls for producer Ted White (Marlon Wayans), a man her dad distrusts. She eventually gets a recording contract with Columbia Records.

Her career goes pretty much nowhere. She eventually switches to Muscle Shoals under producer Jerry Wexler (Marc Maron). A late night jam session with her sisters leads to R.E.S.P.E.C.T. with her first smash hit. Her superstar life isn't easy; Ted proves to be an abusive control freak, while she turns to the bottle. She needs help to confront her "demons." She has to stand up for herself to get the Respect she needs. It all leads to the filming of her Amazing Grace live album, which was finally released in 2018.

Aretha Franklin's faith in Hudson is well-rewarded. Hudson's performance as Aretha is a compelling one. She's optimistic but she's not afraid to assert herself. Her performance of Respect and her leaving Ted are audibly crowd-pleasing scenes. In fact, the musical performances are outstanding all around. The alcoholism leads to a stage mishap and a climactic conversation with her dead mother. Overall, she'll get your attention even if it's distracted by the 145 minute runtime.

Who else do we see? Whitaker as C.L. Franklin is a flawed, yet sympathetic stern father figure. He threatens to disown Aretha for seeing Ted, yet he finds it to forgive her later on. Wayans is utterly recognizable as Ted, an abusive jerk with a charming front. Their relationship puts the audience on the fence as to who to root for. But we figure it out at the end. Aretha's sisters, Erma (Saycon Senbloh) and Carolyn (Hailey Kilgore), are great support for her. Mary J. Blige as Dinah Washington doesn't take kindly to one of Aretha's performances, but she gives good advice to her shortly after. 

It's a slow but steady movie. Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin's quest for Respect makes the long haul worth it. See it in theatres if you can. You'll have a larger crowd to hear cheering with her if you do. Like mine.