And I am telling you I'm not disappointed! :p Dreamgirls is one of the best films of the year and the best musical in years. Early in the year, Dreamgirls was already in the front of the Oscar race, even before anyone has even watched the final product. It's also a movie many were and still are against because they don't want a "fluffy musical" winning Best Picture. Dreamgirls is so much more than a fluffy musical. It's a beautiful story with some of the best acting of the year. Beyonce Knowles was great as Deena. Her solo song "Listen." which was written for the movie, recieved applause at my theater. She deserves every bit of praise she gets and hopefully her performance here will award her a better acting career. Eddie Murphy and Jamie Foxx are great here, both displaying wonderful vocals and both giving two of the years best supporting actor performances. Anika Noni Rose was also great in her role, providing some much needed comedic relief throguhout the show. Then the performance everyone and their mother has head of, Jennifer Hudson. What can I say about her that hasn't been said? She gives one of the best supporting actress performances in years. If she doesn't win the Oscar, I'll be disappointed. Her vocals are amazing; so much she recieved applause during "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" and "Changing," as well at the end when her name popped up during the credits. I can't talk about her enough, she is just fantastic here and I hope she's offered more movie roles because this girl can act (and sing) her butt off. The songs are nice and catchy and direction is great. Although my main problem was sometimes the actual musical songs felt a bit awkward. Especially the song "Family." Still, Dreamgirls is a real treat for everyone. I don't understand how someone could not enjoy it. Definitely recommended!

9/10 (A)

Glad the brainwashing didn't get everyone. And for those that asked: I am in the okay, but waaaay overrated camp. Just thought about the movie again today since I wrote my official review about it and I realized once again there are way too many flaws in it. The ridiculous sung dialogue aside the movie is overlong, Jamie Foxx was terrible and Condon's directing is flawed. From what I heard they went close to the Original Supremes story with the movie than the musical did. Wjy don't go all the way then and show how it really was and let the Effie character die young? No guts, no glory. To me it is a mediocre movie like Chicago was. I'd rather watch Singin in the Rain, Band Wagon and Moulin Rouge ten times in a row again than Dreamgirls a second time. It's a C, nothing more, nothing less

Arsi said that halfway through the movie a guy in a restaurant starts singing either at or about his potatoes.

I don't recall...potatoes...

Maybe, though. I might not have been paying good enough attention!

Well any food.

There is no food related song, and as far as I know nobody sings to any food either.

had high expectations, and they were all met and then some. This is a wonderful picture. In fact, it feels less like a film and more like an experience. As far as recent film musicals go, I think Chicago is probably the better overall picture and has more memorable music, but Dreamgirls has far more heart and soul. Nearly every character in the film is three-dimensional and complex; I was invested in all of the things happening to them. Jamie Foxx does a solid job convincing the audience to hate his character, showing the unfortunate effects of greed and power. Beyonce is a surprise as Deena, who consistently comes across as sympathetic and level-headed. Eddie Murphy gives an inspired, energetic (I dare say almost manic) performance as Jimmy Early. In supporting roles, Anika Noni Rose, Keith Robinson, Sharon Leal, and Danny Glover are all solid. Everything that has been said about Jennifer Hudson, in arguably the best performance I have seen by an actress this year, is true. Rarely have I seen a performer capture the camera's attention so intensely. This is one of the best movies of the year. A

Crowd Reaction
Oh, goodness. Jennifer Hudson's "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" literally got a standing ovation from half of the audience, and I'm not exaggerating. Beyonce's performance of "Listen" also got some scattered applause. At the end, the audience applauded, and then applauded even louder when the "And Introducing Jennifer Hudson" card came up. I have never seen a single actor in a film receive that much of a response from an audience before.

Were you in Chicago this afternoon when you saw this? Because that sounds JUST LIKE my crowd's reaction (Not sure about standing ovation though, I didn't looks behind me). Still, the biggest reaction I've ever gotten was from a screening of Singin' in the Rain, but that's expected.

As for the movie itself, I really enjoyed it, a lot more than I expected. It was fluff, but good fluff. ***.5/****

Regarding the performances...

I can't exactly not jump on the Jennifer Hudson train; she gives one of the most spirited performances I've seen this year, solely based on her I Am Telling you performance -- and a nomination is, indeed, deserved. But I must agree with those saying that her nomination still seems to be based more on her singing than her acting skills, which in her dramatic scenes are good but never great. I guess her performance alone for that one scene is good enough for an Oscar nomination (like I said, I haven't seen more spirit from a female supporting performance this year), but in my opinion, if another actress in her category outacts her, then Hudson doesn't deserve the win.

Beyonce, again, is good but not great in her dramatic scenes. She shines, though (and just plain emotes so much better), in her singing scenes. Loved the Listen scene and the once preceding I Am Telling You (the one where the whole crew confronts Effie). Thought those were the film's high points.

I don't know if I was ever blown away by Eddie Murphy here, but he does play his role effortlessly. I can see why he's getting attention.

Jamie Foxx isn't bad, as people have been saying; he just doesn't have much to work with. A very one-note, unsurprising character.

The film will be receiving two acting nominations, both of which I'm fine with... but probably won't be rooting for.

you mean Blinded by the Light, right?

Yeahhh...

I don't think either side is "blinded by the light." Maybe we should accept the fact some people like this movie, others don't, and move on? Neither of the opinions is in the wrong...

C'mon sister - - say Hallelujah!!!

Oh and about that ending...

It would have been fine. Except for the 15 cuts to her daughter. And Jamie Foxx "realizing."

Which was just laughably bad. And totally out-of-step from the rest of the film.

Shh...

That's not how we do things around here little lady.

I quite liked that, actually. I mean, if they're going to have Jamie Foxx find out he has a daughter, I preferred to see it that way (poetic justice as Effie finally gets to sing lead) rather than some more soap opera-ish way it could have been handled.

I agree. Actually. I didn't see anything wrong with it, in fact I was quite impressed that they didn't handle it in some cliched soap-opera way as you pointed it.

Meh. I thought it was a good film. It wasn't "all that" to me, and certainly not the best film of the year but I enjoyed it. Still, it ranks a few notches below my favorites in the genere (Moulin Rouge! and Chicago), but it is up there as far as it being a fun film to watch. I'll pick it up on DVD for sure.

I was really excited about seeing it, and...

Wasn't ecstatic about it, but I liked it. It's a good movie with some great performances.

I don't know if I would say Jennifer Hudson was worth all the hype but I thought she was great. Beyonce was actually pretty decent, too.

B/B+.

Yeah, but to literally end the film with that, and the manner in which it was filmed, felt pretty awkward to me.

I think this is a prime example of why reading too many reviews and hype can negatively affect one's viewing of a film.

Welcome to the "Enjoyed But Didn't Love" club. You'll receive your membership decal and special-edition plush toy in the mail shortly.

A fluff for sure, and the script is nothing special, but damn, what an entertaining film. And every praise toward Hudson is well-deserved.

So I saw it again second time.


Hudson's "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" still gets to me.

^ Hahahahhaaaaaa! nerd!


I thought it was pretty good. The only main issue I had was with the pacing. I thought it was kind of awkward how they didn't burst out into a musical number until...like...30 minutes into the movie.

But that aside, almost everything else was great. The music, the set, Hudson....even Beyonce did a good job, I think.

B+

It's a very easy movie to love, I'll say that. Incredibly enjoyable and it does have a vibrant energy and mood that was sorely lacking in the painful Chicago. The acting ranged from good to great, with Eddie Murphy being the standout for me. If that montage towards the beginning doesn't sell you on him I don't know what will. Afterwards he doesn't have quite as showy of a moment, but he always feels completely believable and never in-your-face. Jennifer Hudson has one hell of a pair of lungs, but maybe because my theater was nonreactive I didn't get nearly as much out of her performance as most have. Hell even the big song everyone's been talking about so much didn't strike me as so much better then many other numbers in the film, though that's probably from overhype. If I could place a flaw on the film, it's that it's that I was never very emotionally attached to the film or any of it's characters. But that's just why it isn't one of my very favorite films of the year, it's still one of the best. A-

Disappointing. And no, I didn't read a bunch of positive reviews before either. My theater was pretty lively, and I know Hudson has been getting raves, and I don't understand any of it. The songs were good, but some fell flat, the family one in particular (just terrible). And I know this is a musical, but the singing of important emotional dialogue, along with the flat storyline and unlikable characters kept me from getting attached to this movie. That would be fine if I could say it held my attention, and it did to an extent, but it didn't grip me enough musically and visually for me to praise it and ignore its many faults.
To breakdown my annoyance with the sung dialogue further, I'll just say that although I KNOW this is a musical, it just made the film too rediculous to me. Actual creative songs during these moments would have been fine, but it was simply SINGING dialogue, so there was no rhyme or rhythm to it, and when casual dialogue is sung, to me, it just comes out funny, and prevents you from taking any character or situation seriously. Eddie Murphy is great, though.

C+ for now. (But Hudson does have a magnificent voice.)

And one other note, I looked down for a minute, and all of a sudden I look up, and the credits are rolling. Oops.

I liked it. It's a good picture. But not a great one. Except for Effie, we never really get to know the Dreamgirls. Condon the director let me down, too; the movie feels generic, TV movie-ish and unfocused. And as much as Hudson rocked the musical sequences, I was less-than-thrilled with her handling of the dialogue. That goes for the movie, too; everytime it sings, the movie is exhilarating. It's a shame we have to watch it talk.