"Ray"
I saw "Ray" last night. Good movie. Interesting movie.
I was more fascinated by learning about Charles' life than I was gripped by any drama inherent to his story. I didn't know the specifics of his dirt-poor past. I didn't know how he became blind. I didn't know he got his start in Seattle of all places (where he met Quincy Jones). I didn't know he was the first to merge R&B and soul. I didn't know he had a keen mind, not only for what would sell musically, but for business as well.
It was interesting that they really didn't play up the racial angle. To be sure, they had segments that set the context for growing up black in the south in the 1940s and '50s. And there was a bit on Charles being the first black performer to refuse to perform in Georgia because the shows were segregated.
But the filmmakers wisely avoided making the film into a "black man overcomes racial prejudice to win the hearts of millions of whites and find success on his own terms" kind of thing.
They rightly focused on the challenges that made Charles' life unique. His blindness, of course. His heroin addiction. His philandering.
Another interesting thing was the portrayal of the executives from Atlantic Records. Normally the impression you get from movies and musicians is that record executives are greedy SOBs who will screw artists at the first chance they get. Charles, by contrast, had the good fortune to hook up with people who actually cared about him as a person and a musician. They pushed him to explore himself, find his own sound. They gave him a fair deal in the process. And when a better deal came along, they wished him well.
I was more fascinated by learning about Charles' life than I was gripped by any drama inherent to his story. I didn't know the specifics of his dirt-poor past. I didn't know how he became blind. I didn't know he got his start in Seattle of all places (where he met Quincy Jones). I didn't know he was the first to merge R&B and soul. I didn't know he had a keen mind, not only for what would sell musically, but for business as well.
It was interesting that they really didn't play up the racial angle. To be sure, they had segments that set the context for growing up black in the south in the 1940s and '50s. And there was a bit on Charles being the first black performer to refuse to perform in Georgia because the shows were segregated.
But the filmmakers wisely avoided making the film into a "black man overcomes racial prejudice to win the hearts of millions of whites and find success on his own terms" kind of thing.
They rightly focused on the challenges that made Charles' life unique. His blindness, of course. His heroin addiction. His philandering.
Another interesting thing was the portrayal of the executives from Atlantic Records. Normally the impression you get from movies and musicians is that record executives are greedy SOBs who will screw artists at the first chance they get. Charles, by contrast, had the good fortune to hook up with people who actually cared about him as a person and a musician. They pushed him to explore himself, find his own sound. They gave him a fair deal in the process. And when a better deal came along, they wished him well.
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