Well Worth the Wait!

Rating: 10/10 (29 December 2006)

I first fell in love with the original score way back in the eighties. I heard Jennifer Holiday's powerhouse vocals on two of Broadway's legendary show-stopping tunes and I was hooked. I knew the words to all the songs and sang along with abandon at the drop of a hat. That soundtrack ranks as one of my top five favorites. I never saw the play but I live nowhere close to where it played...EVER. I kept hoping to see a film of the play somewhere and searched for years. I bought the two CD concert recording with Audra McDonald a couple years ago. Didn't think there would be anything I'd like as well as the original. I loved that version as well mainly because it's like having an unabridged version of the stage play on my CD player.
So I'm a fan, right? As a fan I was really leery about this new version of the play. I was excited but didn't really believe that these folk (actors/singers) would be able to live up to the material. I like Beyonce and she's got a good voice but she's more performer than singer. I adore Eddie Murphy but he's a bit long in the tooth and while I thought his "Party All The Time" was an amusing bit of 80's fluff I didn't really believe he could pull off James "Thunder" Early without winking at the camera and letting us all know that he didn't take it seriously. I was aware of Jennifer Hudson but she had been pushed aside on that show...American Idol...by Fantasia. I detest Fantasia and if she was supposed to be better than Jennifer then I really had reservations about my two favorite songs getting the justice they deserved.
But, I'm a sucker for this material so I plunked down my money and found myself in a seat prepared to make excuses for the mess that I was SURE would be on the screen. I had the surprise of my life! The movie great.
Wait, let me say that again, please...
The movie is GREAT! Damn good! Marvelous!! The story is so real yet not maudlin or overbearing. The music, ya'll the MUSIC!! I was moved to tears more than once. Eddie Murphy surprised the hell out of me. He can SING!! He paid homage to all the great soul singers and crooners. Way to go Eddie!! Jennifer Hudson grabs the camera by the throat and won't let go whenever she's on screen. Her voice, oh Lord, that voice! Let me just say, for the record, that girl has SKILLS!! Beyonce has more depth in her performance than I thought possible. Her voice has a maturity that I didn't realize she possessed. I knew Jamie Foxx could sing and act but he went to a dark place to find Curtis and brings home the goods. Anika Noni Rose is a jewel and so underused it's almost a crime.
Bottom line...GO SEE THIS! You have GOT to experience this in a theater! Don't wait for the DVD...Run, DO NOT WALK to your local movie theater and see this picture. Then go out and buy the Dreamgirls Deluxe Edition double CD. All the songs are on that version and they ROCK!!