GetPapa Far from Perfect, Far from Terrible

PiraBit if their story seems completely bonkers, almost like a feverish work of fiction, you ain't heard nothing yet.

Alistair Olson After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.

Phillida Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

kisami777 Chadwick Boseman's acting, in my opinion, was excellent. I really, really, can't believe or understand why he and this movie didn't win an Academy Award. Maybe because I tend to lean more toward natural and believable acting roles than those of generally expected, predictable roles. All the actors were so good and I just watched it again on TV (CTRC) and still enjoyed it as if I was watching it for the first time. That's when you know a movie is good...that's the measuring tool. Plus James Brown's life was an interesting one, no doubt. He rose through the ashes and made something of himself, almost as if, it was just plain destiny. Even though he was treated so bad as a child, it made him the man he became and nobody can take that away...nobody.

curiousjasmine This film isn't quite as bad as Gigli or other movies I could never find it in me to complete but bad enough for you to question your judgment for picking it up in the first place and to rejoice when it's finally over.It was outlandish yet isn't categorized as a comedy which is the saddest part of all, maybe it is due in part to not being a James Brown fan but this movie just dragged out to me and made James Brown look like a bully and a minstrel character who happened to strike it rich because music surrounded him and he already had a knack for it. The film takes you from the time James was a child to him as a teen and then shows him in the industry.

Python Hyena Get On Up (2014): Dir: Tate Taylor / Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, Craig Robinson: Music drama about extending one's abilities through hardship. James Brown was a musical icon symbolizing the best of soul. He is played to near perfection by Chadwick Boseman who, unlike John Lloyd Young in Jersey Boys, actually embodies the body, personality and energetic singing talent of James Brown. The screenplays starts with promise but falters with its back and forth disjointed presentation of flashbacks. We witness his harsh upbringing with neglect from both parents. We witness his arrest after breaking into a car and stealing a suit. It is here that he meets Nelsan Ellis who is performing in jail and is caught in the middle of a fight. He and Brown hit it off and together they embark on a music career. Dan Aykroyd plays Ben Bart who will become his manager and backer. One may remember the real James Brown performing in Aykroyd's masterpiece The Blues Brothers, which may indicate his interest in this project. Viola Davis plays Brown's mother who left when he was young and reappears back stage but to an unwelcome son who remembers the neglect. Craig Robinson plays one of the many band mates who questions Brown's controlling attitude thus causing tension. The film highlights classic performances where Boseman brings forth the screeching voice that has cemented the image of soul. Directed by Tate Taylor who previously made The Help. The screenplay cannot do justice to every key moment in the life of this entertainer but it does get on up with what made him great. Score: 8 / 10

LeonLouisRicci Super Glossy and Glossing Over most Things, this Biopic of the "Godfather of Soul", James Brown, is a Hit and Miss Missed Opportunity Packaged and Paraded out as another Tame African-American "Success" Story. The Movie's Groove comes from the Good Interpretation of the Soul Singer (by Chadwick Boseman). Mr. Brown, who came from the Dirt Poor South and His Style became Infectious to White-Bread Teen-America, as it Crossed Over from the Soul and R&B to the Pop Charts bringing a Unique Sound and a Dynamic Stage Presence.But the Movie is a Suffering. It Strains to be "acceptable" with all aspects of the Icon's Personality. His Struggles with Ego, Women, Money, and Drugs are Presented in a "People Magazine" Coating of Gloss without any Deep Consideration just Mention.The Music is Interesting for Newbies to Explore and Fans to Revisit, and the Onstage Mr. Brown is a Believable Recreation. But the Director is frequently Inconsistent with Awkward Time-Shifting, Fourth Wall Breaking, and a Desire to make it all so Palatable. Truth Is, James Brown, the Man, was Hardly Likable Like this Treatment.He was Raw and Routinely Rowdy and when the Movie Ventures into the Violence or the Flamboyant Ego, or the Tyranny Towards His Band-Mates it Never Penetrates it just Cuddles Uncomfortably. The Signature On Stage Slow Exit and Return Donning and Removing His Cape Endlessly while Singing His First and Fan Favorite Hit "Please, Please, Please" is presented so Quick and Thrown Away, it becomes a Glaring Gap in the Understanding of its Power and Newness. The Opening "Shotgun to the Ceiling" Scene is so Cringe Worthy it is Embarrassing, much like the Ending "Police Chase". In Fact, These Bookends are So Bad it is a Wonder that the rest of the Movie Holds Up as Well as it Does.Overall, Not Awful, but Nothing Approaching the "Say it loud, I'm Black and I'm proud" Feel the Film should Have Felt. As is, it Feels Ironically, Not Fully, but Frequently, Soul Less.