THE FILM
TITLE: The Color Purple
RELEASE DATE: 20 Nov 2023
WATCH DATE: 07 Mar 2024
TYPE: live-action feature film
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THE PEOPLE
DIRECTOR: Blitz Bazawule
PRODUCER: Steven Spielberg, Quincy Jones, Oprah Winfrey, Scott Sanders
WRITER: Marcus Gardley
ACTORS: Fantasia Barrino, Taraji P. Henson, Danielle Brooks, Colman Domingo, Corey Hawkins, Phylicia Pearl Mpasi, Halle Bailey, Ciara, H.E.R., David Alan Grier, Deon Cole, Jon Batiste
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THE STORY
RUNTIME: 2h 21m
STORYLINE: the life of a black woman unfolds across decades as she lives through hardship and abuse, finding strength in her fellow black women and ultimately her faith in God
GENRE/THEMES: drama, musical, Faith/Christianity, Black stories, redemption, family
A remake of the 1985 film, based on the book The Color Purple by Alice Walker
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THE CRITIQUE
THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS
Right from the opening scene, the heart and soul of The Color Purple blossoms to life. Costumes, choreography, music, vocals, and Spanish moss hanging from the live oaks bring you to the South in 1909.
The Color Purple is powerful. Powerful performances. Powerful voices. Powerful lyrics. And a powerful story. Throughout most of the film, we wait for ‘Mister’ (Colman Domingo) to get what he deserves - which wouldn’t be a bad move for the story to take. There is something more powerful though than getting what we deserve… redemption. Even for such a monster like him. Yet through his interactions with his father, we see that he isn’t a monster at all, but a deeply wounded man. Hurt people, hurt people. And hurt people can be redeemed. We can nearly taste it coming as the rain pours down on ‘Mister’, collapsed and sobbing in the mud.
Near the middle of the film, there is a section of the story where Celie and Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson) begin to develop some sort of affection or attraction to one another. The musical number What About Love? comes off as forced and out of place compared to the rest of the story. The attraction is pointless to the plot and distracts the storyline.
The movements of the film through the years - 1909, 1917, 1930, 1943, 1945, and 1947 - are seamless. Being a fly on a wall for the life of a character has never been so natural. You nearly miss the change in actresses from Phylicia Pearl Mpasi (broadway production of The Lion King, 2015-2020) as Young Celie to Barrino as adult Celie. Fantasia Barrino (Celie) holds nothing back. Every ounce of her passion pours right out of the screen as you live through nearly 4 decades with Celie. Her performance of I’m Here, her starring number, is empowering.
It is a shame this film was not recognized by the Academy in more categories. Production Design was flawless. Lead acting was of the highest quality. Even a Best Picture nod would have been deserved. Danielle Brooks’ portrayal of Sofia indeed deserves her nomination, though I don’t think she had enough screen time to be competitive enough against her fellow nominees.
The cinematography moves dramatically into each musical number from the previous scene, leaving your eyes wide at just how cool that transition was! Moving through each number, the camera captures the emotion of the actress(es). While the musical numbers aren’t particularly catchy or memorable, the lyrics are glorious and inspirational. The numbers energize the film and do their part to carry along the story. The powerful story builds up to an emotional final scene where Celie is given the ultimate redemption with the reunion of her family.
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THE RECEPTION
NOMINATIONS
Academy Award for Supporting Actress (Danielle Brooks)
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THE IMPRESSION
IN A SINGLE WORD: POWERFUL
MOST STRIKING ELEMENT: storyline
REWATCH: oh yes
RATING: 4.5 // 5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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