Posted: 12/19/20 at 1:36am
I watched the movie tonight. It is an EVENT. Viola and Chad are outstanding. Give them their Oscar now. The rest of the cast are very good. I have some minor quibbles with the directing at the beginning, but things settle down. The movie is a hit to the gut. It is not to be missed.
Posted: 12/19/20 at 10:23am
Posted: 12/19/20 at 10:38am
I hope Glynn Turman is remembered in the supporting category.
Posted: 12/19/20 at 10:43am
I hope they start mentioning that the fabulous Maxayn Lewis provided the singing vocals for Ma Rainey/Viola Davis. Everyone I know thought that was Viola Davis singing.
Posted: 12/19/20 at 11:15am
Posted: 12/19/20 at 11:20am
Posted: 12/19/20 at 11:31am
dramamama611 said: "Ahhh...movie magic. Most people SHOULD think that. Being a voice is a thankless job.
Viola did sing one song, I do not know which.
The one moment where you will actually hear Davis' singing voice comes about 25 minutes into the film. Ma embraces her girlfriend Dussie Mae (Taylour Paige) and croons "Those Dogs of Mine" directly into her ear. It's an intimate moment, and Davis almost talks through the melody as part of her seduction. Her voice cracks as she kisses Dussie Mae's neck.
Posted: 12/19/20 at 2:25pm
Posted: 12/19/20 at 3:17pm
Posted: 12/19/20 at 4:57pm
Miles2Go2 said: "As I’ve only seen this and Fences on film, here’s to hoping more of his works are revived on stage and/or film. "
Your hopes are being as answered! Denzel Washington made an agreement with the Wilson estate, and he said in 2015 that he would be executive producing nine of the plays in The Cycle, and starring in one (which was Fences).
Posted: 12/19/20 at 5:02pm
An interesting article about the play and the film.
https://www.post-gazette.com/ae/theater-dance/2020/12/11/Ma-Rainey-movie-play-different-August-Wilson-Christopher-Rawson/stories/202012110014
Posted: 12/19/20 at 5:58pm
Posted: 12/19/20 at 6:07pm
Posted: 12/19/20 at 6:29pm
darquegk said: "As a Pittsburgher born and raised, it wasn’t until grad school that I discovered Wilson was a comparatively minor figure in American literature, and not the single predominant voice of the twentieth century drama."
What? How long ago were you in grad school? There are many important voices in twentieth century American drama. August Wilson is high on the list. Unlike O'Neill, Williams , Miller, Shepard, Lanford Wilson, he wrote a 10 play cycle. The 10 will continue being studied and performed for years. On a side note, for many in the White American Theatre, August Wilson is The Black Playwright, so the plays of other Black writers are ignored. Of course, some people think musicals are the be all and end all of theatre. They have a limited view of theatre and the world.
Posted: 12/19/20 at 10:36pm
Posted: 12/19/20 at 11:52pm
Posted: 12/20/20 at 12:00am
SouthernCakes said: "How is it normally presented on stage? All in the recording studio? Single set kind of production?"
My memory is that it's all in the recording studio. I think that there are some lighting changes that imply private conversations but that may have just been directorial choice.
Posted: 12/20/20 at 12:29am
SouthernCakes said: "How is it normally presented on stage? All in the recording studio? Single set kind of production?"
There are two locations: the recording studio with the control booth and the "band room" in the basement. Do a Google Image search to see different productions.
Posted: 12/20/20 at 12:43am
Posted: 12/20/20 at 12:52am
Posted: 12/20/20 at 10:51am
LarryD2 said: "I hope Glynn Turman is remembered in the supporting category."
Second!
Posted: 12/20/20 at 10:54am
darquegk said: "As a Pittsburgher born and raised, it wasn’t until grad school that I discovered Wilson was a comparatively minor figure in American literature, and not the single predominant voice of the twentieth century drama."
Wilson is a major figure in American literature.
Posted: 12/20/20 at 10:54am
darquegk said: "As a Pittsburgher born and raised, it wasn’t until grad school that I discovered Wilson was a comparatively minor figure in American literature, and not the single predominant voice of the twentieth century drama."
Wilson is a major figure in American literature.
Posted: 12/20/20 at 11:02am
Watched last night - wow, what a terrific film! I am so hoping for many, MANY nominations for this and, hopefully, lots of wins.
Such beautiful work from so many.
Posted: 12/21/20 at 7:50am
Boseman and Davis deserves Oscars. Those performances were insanely good and I was so wrapped in the film that I forgot I was watching either of them.
The ending with Boseman’s character realising he has lost his future and any glory he knew he could achieve with his talent compared to Boseman passing away before he was able to achieve the real life glory he was likely to reach in his career was absolutely heartbreaking and actually made my cold heart tear up a little bit.
