We enjoyed this powerful story about the acclaimed blues singer and a 1927 Chicago recording session. Viola Davis is terrific as the mercurial Rainey and Chadwick Boseman electrifying in his final performance as manic horn player Levee. The adaptation of August Wilson's 1984 play has some great music but there's plenty of meat, literally and figuratively, as Davis put on weight for the role and shows us a Black woman taking no guff from anyone. The rest of the band is Glynn Turman as Toledo, Colman Domingo as Cutler, and Michael Potts as Slow Drag; and Jeremy Shamos plays the nervous agent Mr. Irvin.
George C. Wolfe directs from Ruben Santiago-Hudson's adaptation of Wilson's play. Denzel Washington, one of the producers, plans to produce all ten of Wilson's (1945-2005) "Century Cycle" plays. This is the second, after Fences, in which Washington starred with Davis. The original Ma Rainey's Black Bottom ran on Broadway for 276 performances and earned several Tony nominations. Whoopi Goldberg starred in 68 performances of a 2003 revival.
Branford Marsalis provides the score and Maxayn Lewis supplies the vocals for Davis. The soundtrack is available with a subscription to Apple Music and for free on Spotify.
The exterior scenes, set in Chicago, were shot in Wilson's hometown of Pittsburgh by cinematographer Tobias Schliessler, who also has the creamy indoor lighting done to perfection. Ann Roth's costumes are worth a mention, too.
The exterior scenes, set in Chicago, were shot in Wilson's hometown of Pittsburgh by cinematographer Tobias Schliessler, who also has the creamy indoor lighting done to perfection. Ann Roth's costumes are worth a mention, too.
Davis was last blogged for Troop Zero (she won an Oscar for Fences), Boseman for Avengers: Infinity War, and Domingo for If Beale Street Could Talk. After I mentioned him in Race (which starred Boseman as Jesse Owens), Turman was in many things, including The Way Back and six episodes of season 4 of Fargo. His agent says he's having a Glynn-aissance.
Shamos is an Obie-winning and Tony-nominated stage actor whose face is familiar for many TV roles. Wolfe is a Tony-winning director who also directed the TV-movie The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks (2017), back when there was a difference between a TV-movie and a feature film. This is the second script for Santiago-Hudson. Marsalis, who scored The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks and has worked with Spike Lee on various projects, is a noted jazz saxophonist from an esteemed musical family and Lewis is a talented lead and backup singer with many credits. Schliessler's credits include Dreamgirls (2006), Hancock (2008), and Beauty and the Beast.
Rotten Tomatoes' critics' average is a swinging 99%, while its audiences merely tap toes at 81. It's good and worth a watch on Netflix.
Rotten Tomatoes' critics' average is a swinging 99%, while its audiences merely tap toes at 81. It's good and worth a watch on Netflix.
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