Nina

Everything you wouldn't want to see in a film about Nina Simone. While Zoe Saldana might get a C+ for effort, one wonders if there were any mirrors anywhere on set or if she figured CGI would fix her appearance; although, the problems with this abysmal film are greater than Zoe's horrific makeup. The story is disjointed and focuses on absolutely arbitrary parts of Nina's life. There is no depth or realness to Cynthia Mort's vision of Nina and - considering the subject matter - that's an injustice. It could be considered an accomplishment that Mort was able to create a film about Nina Simone that leaves the viewer feeling nothing at all. Perhaps the worst part of the film is how ugly they made Nina. While she might not have been what's considered conventionally pretty, Nina possessed an elegant beauty that was a powerful part of her performance. Nina Simone was a beautiful woman and to turn her into a creature from the blackface lagoon in a biopic is unforgivable.

Wow, that was a tough watch. Saldana is an appealing and decent actress within her range, but she's way, way out of it here, and given a script and a character that she simply can't do justice to.

It's rare that actors are asked to play older than their age, and for good reason: everyone can remember what it was like being younger, but can only imagine being older. There's no gravitas or presence to Saldana's performance here, and she can't anchor this muddled, tentative film. Since it's entirely about her, well, you see the problem.

And we have to talk about the blackface. Saying "yeah, but it was required for the role" doesn't make it all right. That's how you get Occidentals playing Charlie Chan or Fu Manchu, or girls with less Native American ancestry than Elizabeth Warren playing Comanches.

One rule for all, no exceptions, please.

I came in with expectations about this film. They weren't particularly high but what I did expect was to a lesser degree the music and vocal styling. Zoe Saldana as Nina Simone missed that mark completely. Unlike Jamie Fox in Ray where he magnificently captured Ray Charles's vocal patterns and musical style, you get none of this with Saldana's Nina. In fact, it doesn't transport you away at all. It's an unpleasant look into Nina's last years of her life, one that you do not wish to fully examine. And then there is the makeup that was applied to Zoe Saldana. It was not a visual look that was welcomed. I don't know if they were trying to capture Nina's appearance but this too was flawed and I go back to Jamie Fox role as Ray. Maybe Zoe Saldana was the wrong choice although I do see her being credited as one of the producers along with David Oyelowo who also has a role in this so maybe this was more of a vanity thing because they did it and figured it was easier for her to play the role. the other thing that bothered me was that they kept jumping from one era to another without any consistency. It was a visual headache to the story that just didn't fit. This was tough to watch.

So, I'll try to not include the controversy I heard about Star Trek's Zoe Saldana, playing the Infamous Nina Simone, although that's what made me interested in buying the ticket.

Overall, Saldana's performance was just OK. It's not the worse thing I've ever seen, it's not the best performance I've ever seen. It's not a milestone in her acting career, unlike her co-star David Oyelowo's magnificent turn as Doctor Martian Luther King Jr. in the movie, Selma. Mike Epps made an interesting cameo as Richard Pryor in the movie which left me something more than Saldana as Simone.

Nina is a focus on the last eight or so years of Simone's life, which was odd as Saldana (and the make up job they did on her) did not convince me she was a 70 year old woman. Mainly, it centers around the relationship Nina had with her new manager, Clifton Henderson.

It's another one of these films that tells us more about the type of personality the artist is rather than anything about the person's life. It's similar to Don Cheadle's take on Miles Davis in the film Miles Ahead, but that film had some magic in it that this movie does not.

Saldana and the film did an OK job letting us know the type of artist Nina Simone was, but you did not feel the passion behind it. I know it's near impossible to create a motion picture about Nina that would visually do what Simone could do with her musical talents, but I did not feel any effort towards it at all.

So overall, at the moment Saldana still has playing the most ionic woman in Sci-Fi on the top of her resume, while playing the greatest singer of all time will not even register. The make-up was fine and her voice was satisfying, but like I said I was not expected her to sound like Nina Simone, but this movie is not passionate like her music.

Why a 6? There are few performers that can captivate an audience. Nina Simone was one of those performer. It's a crime, no sin, the same cannot be said of her biography. The first biography I was not invested in the character. The treatment of Mississippi Burning best describes this movie. Power, hate and anger best describes the song. It is also one of Nina's iconic song, brushed over barely a mention. The best description of the movie: brushed over. Why the 6? I believed Zoe Saldana was incapable of portraying a powerful woman as Nina Simone; I was wrong. Is the movie worth watching for her performance? Sadly No. Nina deserved a better treatment of her life.