The Color Purple (2023) We're so conflicted about how this movie struck us, we've no idea how to write a coherent review.....
Ah well.....maybe coherence is overrated.....just ask anyone who sat through 'Madame Web'.....or try reading one of Trump's 'Truth Social' tweets.....
So here goes our thoughts in complete random order.
Let's start with.....much of it is brilliant, with dazzling performances from the entire cast and raise the roof, showstopping musical numbers.....with deliriously exuberant choreography....
But wait a sec.....musical numbers? Rip-roaring dances? Isn't this a remake of Steven Spielberg's 1985 version of the iconic Alice Walker novel? About a young black girl in early 20th century rural Georgia who suffers constant abuse and heartbreak at the hands of both her father and her brutal, heartless husband?
No, not a remake, really. But a cinema version of the Broadway musical version of Walker's book, complete with music and dances designed to lift you off you seat to give standing ovations.
And here's where the film left us perplexed. Because throughout its length, the perpetual array of heartrending, soul-sucking brutal experiences are regularly interrupted by the frenzied, jump-for-joy song 'n dance numbers.
(We should point out here that as far as Broadway scores go, the music here is never more than adequate and servicable....don't expect to be humming any of the tunes....)
Spielberg, of course, only had to deal with a few in-context musical numbers, so his film solely concentrated on the drama, along with pounding on audiences heartstrings until they begged for mercy.
Though Spielberg, coming from middle class, Jewish suburbia, had no real affinity with the material, he razzle-dazzled everyone with his well known mastery of film technique......meticulously staging every camera shot for maximum dramatic effect. Despite all his popular success, he still craved artistic validation and you could sense it in every carefully composed frame of his "The Color Purple".
But at the time, critics and Oscar voters pretty much viewed him like the Bradley Cooper of the 1980's......a 'try-harder' who reeked of 'gimme-my-Oscar please!' desperation.....and until "Schindler's List" all his efforts in that regard were ignored or passed over.
And that's why this 2023 version of 'Purple' vastly benefits from its creative team of African American screenwriter Marcus Gardley and Ghanian born director Blitz Bazawule. Ultimately, they bring the kind of genuine empathy and emotional commitment to telling this story that's more than equal to all of Spielberg's camera work and editing finesse.
But as previously mentioned, those barn-burnin', knock-your-socks-off musical sequences, as spectacular as they are, look totally out of place and jarring to behold. And the music's not so hot either, compared to other Broadway shows.
But we'll still recommend seeing it for the outstanding work of its phenomenal cast. Fantasia Barrino, Danielle Brooks and Coleman Domingo will stun you. Taraji P. Henson will make your jaw drop as she seizes every scene she's in with powerhouse movie star charisma and the singing chops of someone who's been earning standing o's for decades.
A mixed bag but overall well worth seeing for everyone. 3 stars (***).
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