And I'm Telling You...

stop reading this blog, right now.
get up, get your coat on, and get in your car.
drive to the nearest movie theater and see Dreamgirls.
John and i saw it last night, now it's your turn.

you know your mama had the Original Cast Recording on 8 track or vinyl (and that you bought it on CD when it was re-released a couple of years ago). you know that you know all the words to And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going (complete with Jennifer Holliday's grunts and growls) and One Night Only; you've stood at the bar at Splash, on Musical Mondays, mouthing the words like the wanna-be dragqueen you are. It's in your blood mary, so don't fight it just 'cause neither Miss Holliday nor Sheryl Lee Ralph are in it, nor because you keep picturing Beyonce as Foxy Cleopatara in Austin Powers: Goldmember. i urge you (as John did, me) to seperate yourself from everything you know about the Original Cast. Go in with an open and optimistic mind, and you will be rewarded with a truly entertaining movie-musical-extravaganza.

while not the best movie-musical to be churned out of Hollywood in the last 5 years (read: Chicago), it is certainly lightyears better than the embarassing snoozefest that was Phantom of the Opera (ok maybe i'm just bitter, 'cause i really hate Andrew Lloyd Weber and don't understand his appeal). Beyonce is utterly enchanting despite the deliberate attempt to be made up like Diana Ross's stunt double. it's actually kinda eerie how dead-on-balls the make up artist was in making her up like Miss Ross; there are a couple of scenes where it'd be nearly impossible to tell them apart. we knew the girl could sing, but who knew she could also act so well? Jamie Foxx was his usual snide and unctuous self (i'm supposed to hate him, right?). Eddie Murphy was truly phenomonal in what seems to be the most serious role i've ever seen him in; his singing voice was truly worth mentioning (he's really come a long way since My Girl Loves to Party All the Time).

the thief of the movie, however is Jennifer Hudson who plays the big-boned/big-voiced/pain in the ass Effie (made famous, again, by Jennifer Holliday). Now, i'll admit i went in there thinking that nobody could top La Holliday, and i was right. Jenn Hudson, though give a totally spot-on performance that is just as good as Jenn Holliday. she takes the character of Effie and really makes her her own, adding a unique spin on a complex character. Needless to say, her voice is like a great golden bell, with the most amazing resonance and energy; taking songs that had became someone else's trademark (And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going, I'm Changing, One Night Only) and reshaping them with her own skill and soul. i can't, in good conscience, say that she's better than the original, but she's pretty damn close. on the way home, John played the Deluxe edition CD for me which has Richie Jones' mix of And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going(which completely blows away either of the mixes done for Jennifer Holliday by Junior and Rosabel) and Beyonce's One Night Only, both of which are sure to be crowd favorites.

if this is the trend that movies are taking, the ressurection of the movie musical, i say bring it on. i look forward to seeing the big screen versions of Wicked, La Cage Aux Folles, Anything Goes or my personal favorite Into the Woods. Maybe they can bribe Jennifer Holliday in to play the Witch!


"Why do I love it so much?What kind of magic is this?How come I can't help adore it?It's just another musical"~ In the Musicals (Bjork)