Holiday VS Hudson- Page 2

[MovieGuy1031]

Posted: 1/3/07 at 3:58pm

I enjoyed Hudson's performance much more, though this is based strictly on the recording's of both that I have heard. I did see the movie, in which Jennifer Hudson just completely blew the head off of my shoulders during "And I Am Telling You..." with not only her powerhouse voice, but also her incredibly emotional acting. But, yes, based on the recordings, I much prefer Jennifer Hudson to Jennifer Holliday. Ms. Holliday kinda growls while she sings... which i'm sure is what made it so raw and classic... but I just don't enjoy it as much as Hudson!

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 1/3/07 at 6:03pm

Margo--I love your assessment of both performances. Having seen Holliday on the Tony Awards and Hudson's take on the role in the film, I think "scaled down" says it perfectly.

[soulman83]

Posted: 1/3/07 at 7:40pm

Margo has spoken...No need to continue this. Completely over it.

[MovieGuy1031]

Posted: 1/3/07 at 8:30pm

Agreed, soulman... agreed.

All hail Margo!

[Sharon Lover]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 8:14am

I'm going to say Holliday baecause I don't want her to read this post and do anything drastic. But I loved, loved, loved Hudson's Effie. Perfect? No. Great? yes! I am too young to have seen Holliday but I've heard that she wasn't a great actress. I don't know if its true or not but I'd rather see an Effie who can play the part instead of sing it as well as holliday has. She was revolutionary and no one can achieve what she did but Hudson sure did come close in my opinion.

[Danielm]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 4:20pm

"Hudson, because I can't stand to hear someone destroying their voice like Holliday did."

Hey Spork, I heard Holliday sing a couple of years ago and guess what?

Her voice ain't destroyed. She can still knock the out the back of the theatre.

Again, all you young-uns basing your judgement on the OCR. YOU DIDN'T SEE HOLLIDAY IN THE SHOW SO YOU HAVE NO BASIS TO COMPARE!

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 4:34pm

I'll put twenty on Holliday to win in the third race.

Updated On: 1/4/07 at 04:34 PM

[Sharon Lover]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 4:47pm

what is that supposed to mean? Please elaborate!!

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 5:37pm

I have heard the original many times and it is amazing. I saw Dreamgirls this week after hearing all of the hype, a sure fire way to be disappointed. Not this time, Jennifer Hudson not only delivers but does so on the screen. One reason many movie versions of live shows don't do as well, is because you just don't get the same feeling as you do seeing it live. It is a rare moment when a movie can deliver that same emotion, this one does. Jennifer Hudson not only deserves the hype, but is so powerfull, no one will be let down. Congratulations to her.

[JRybka]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 5:45pm

God I hope he meant in the
CHITA RITA forbidden broadway sort of way and not any other way.....

[TheaterAddict7652]

Posted: 1/4/07 at 10:44pm

Since I was not alive during the original production of Dreamgirls, I'm judging solely based on the vocal performances.

I'd have to saw Holliday is better than Hudson, simply because you cannot beat her redition of "And I Am Telling You". I think that Hudson did a good job with it, but she didn't give the the chills that Holliday gives me every time I listen to the cast recording.

But, I will say that I prefered Hudson's redition of "I Am Changing" more than Holliday's. I never cared for the song when Holliday sang it, and Hudson made me hear the song differently.

[AngusN]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 6:56pm

I must say I prefer Jennifer Hudson's version by a mile. She has much more control, she shows off a bigger vocal range and I feel finds the truth within the song. I just feel that Holliday was over-dramatic and at times sounded like a zoo animal.
I felt that in her desperate attempt - knowing she wasn't a great actress- to connect with the song, she lost her way and at times produced an exaggerated; (verging on the ridiculous) pantomimic song.
(IMO)

[kevs]

Posted: 1/5/07 at 7:18pm

"Hey Spork, I heard Holliday sing a couple of years ago and guess what?

Her voice ain't destroyed. She can still knock the out the back of the theatre."



Not really. Holliday hasn't sung the song in the original key in YEARS, and even when she does sing it, she can't sustain the notes. Don't get me wrong, I love Holliday's voice, but her singing always sounded like it was hurting her throat. Hudson sings in a full voice that doesn't sound like she's damaging her voice.

[broadway86]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 12:43am

Holliday's version is legendary, but if you told me that the only person in the world who could come close to her was Hudson, I wouldn't doubt it. She was sensational.

[jaso_n]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 2:57am

Holliday. This is...kind of a bad question. Hudson, while incredible, did a great reading of Jennifer Holliday's original performance.

[friedrichVT]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 4:46am

Who's to say that Holliday's original performance wasn't a result of Bennett and Krieger's brilliance? She had the amazing instrument but beyond that, she was Bennett's pawn as Hudson appears to be Condon's. They both share an amazing gift and role in theatre/film history. They are both wonderful. But I feel more of the Brilliance lies in the hands of Bennett's manipulation and Condon's modern-day equivalent: EDITING.

Updated On: 1/6/07 at 04:46 AM

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 5:34am

And where is Jennifer Holliday these days, anyway? Last time I saw her or heard her sing, she was guesting on "Ally McBeal." She was moving even then; yes, what an instrument! But with all this hype around the movie, it's interesting that we haven't heard from her much, if at all. Haven't heard of her doing any shows either, recently.

As for her losing some of her vocal power since her performance 25 yrs ago...well...she's, what, 50-something? Hudson is half her age, it's no surprise that her voice is in prime form and Holliday maybe having some problems that come naturally with some aging. Can't knock her for simply having birthdays.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 8:52am

"Jennifer Hudson not only deserves the hype, but is so powerfull, no one will be let down."

I certainly wasn't let down by her singing. I wish I could say the same about her acting.

[kevs]

Posted: 1/6/07 at 9:47am

"As for her losing some of her vocal power since her performance 25 yrs ago...well...she's, what, 50-something? Hudson is half her age, it's no surprise that her voice is in prime form and Holliday maybe having some problems that come naturally with some aging. Can't knock her for simply having birthdays."


I remember seeing her about 10 years ago performing AITY on The Rosie O'Donnell show. I was unimpressed. So ten years ago she was...36? Sorry, but that's too young to be losing range in your voice. And her performance in the Leading Ladies concert (98?) was absolutely dreadful. I wish she practiced a healthier technique, then she could still sing the song in the original key. But she, like many R&B and pop singers, is proud of the fact that she's "never had voice training", despite the fact that good training would prolong the life and health of her voice.

BTW, I say all this as a FAN of Holliday. I still listen to her gospel album occasionally. But I don't accept "age" (she's only 46) as an excuse to let your voice go, just because you're too proud to get voice lessons. (The same goes for Mariah and Whitney's declining voices.)

[AngusN]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 5:39am

Mariah has had extensive vocal training all her life; her mother was a singer with the New York City Opera and a vocal coach. Mariah appreciates the instrument she has and tries her best to maintain a healthy singing voice - not speaking when touring, humidifiers when she is sleeping etc.

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 6:53am

Ive seen them both and have to say i prefered hudson.

Holiday has an amazing voice and blew me away with her singing but her acting was not great,she was very OTT at times and very bland at others.
I recall some critics saying the same thing?

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 1:37pm

Yes "technically" Holliday still has her voice, but it's definitely deteriorated. If she can't even sing the song in the original key anymore, I think that says something.

Even if she hadn't lost her voice, it would be because of luck. Her singing in "And I Am Telling You" is NOT healthy by any means and it pains me to hear it. My friend calls it the equivalent of taking a jack hammer to your vocal cords.

AngusN: If Mariah cared about her voice, she wouldn't screech out notes that the human voice just isn't meant to sing. She said once that after a concert she loses her voice for about a week.

[jv92]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 2:11pm

Hudson was terrific, but Holiday really owned the part. The cast album isn't a good enough representation. You've got to see that Tony performance. It's the only way to prove how great she was.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 3:16pm

I've seen it, actually. It's a brilliant, emotional, performance, but I can't get over the flagrant abuse of her vocal cords. Sorry, that's just how I am.

[best12bars]

Posted: 1/7/07 at 3:26pm

Just a little more food for thought...

Jennifer Holliday WAS Effie. The role was created for her, and WITH her in mind. Many of her traits, faults, abilities, and characteristics were written into the character, the songs, and even the PLOT. She was fired from the show and then she came back. She was difficult to work with, challenging and temperamental during the rehearsal process, etc. We've all heard the stories from the people involved.

Jennifer Hudson is NOTHING like Effie in real life. She's ambitious, sure, but she's a very sweet, happy, excited, young lady. Condon had to work hard with her each day to get her to appear be "difficult," "challenging" and "temperamental" on the screen.

This is called ACTING and DIRECTING for film.

Not type-casting and "being."

I still give Hudson the edge here... for how far she had to come to "find" her Effie.

Updated On: 1/7/07 at 03:26 PM