Not up to the Hype

Rating: 5/10 (27 December 2006)

I wanted to really like this movie. But I just couldn't. During most of the movie, I felt like I was watching "Days of Our Lives." The screenplay seemed to have one pedestrian cliché after another. And the extra songs (added for the film) really didn't enhance the film -- with one notable exception: "Listen" (as sung by Beyonce). But, unfortunately, that song came too late in the film. Jennifer Hudson had already given us The Big Soul Wrenching Song ("And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," which Jennifer Holliday still "owns," by the way) by the time Beyonce delivered "Listen," and I kept thinking, "We really don't need two of these." The film has a terrific cast, and, boy, did the cast deliver. But whose idea was it to cast Eddie Murphy as James Thunder Early? It was almost laughable. I know that a film should stand or fall on its own merits, but I couldn't help thinking how "Dreamgirls" would have been so much better under the direction of Rob Marshall instead of Mr. Condon. My daughter succinctly provided the best summary as we were leaving the theater: "That was kinda long."