Entertaining but confusing

Rating: 7/10 (26 January 2007)

I enjoyed this musical, and I now understand that it is the film version of an old Broadway musical based on the career of Diana Ross and the Supremes. Now that I know that, it's obvious that Deena Jones is based on Ross and Curtis Taylor is Berry Gordy, and Rainbow Records is Motown Records. But my main reason for seeing this was to check out Eddie Murphy's first Oscar-nominated performance.
However, knowing a little bit about Motown, I'm confused about some things. Why would they have Curtis prohibit "message songs?" Some of Motown's biggest successes were highly socially conscious albums by Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye. One of Wonder's earliest hits in the sixties was a cover of Dylan's "Blowin' In the Wind." It seems that the writers really needed a villain and picked Curtis. It just seems unfair to Berry Gordy. It places the deterioration of the Supremes completely on Gordy's lap, and Ross comes off completely clean.
I'm also puzzled as to who Murphy's character is supposed to be. At first I thought it might be Little Richard or Wilson Pickett. Then, later on, he's singing a message song and wearing the same hat Marvin Gaye wore on the cover of What's Going On. Then he becomes James Brown. Murphy did do a great job. Both he and Hudson deserve their nominations. The music and presentation are very good. The story? Not so much, but that's like a lot of musicals.