Sparkle - La luce del successo

I get skeptic on watching movies that revolve around singing groups in the 50s-80s because I feel like they are all the same. However, I absolutely enjoyed and would love to see this movie again. Let me just say Carmen Ejogo is an absolutely AMAZING actress. She practically had me in tears throughout the whole movie because she betrayed her character so well! Im not familiar with Carmens work but she sold it. Shes stunningly beautiful, and I cant wait to see her in other upcoming films. Jordan Sparks off course is an amazing singer, and for being her first film she did a good job. I think with time shell be better actress. I think this movie was a great last goodbye for Whitney Houston. Im glad I was able to hear her sing one last time. (: This is definitely a must see, and I will for surely be recommending this movie to everyone I see.

Sparkle is a low rent version of Dreamgirls so to speak a remake of an unremarkable film form the 70s is a bad film make no mistake about it. The direction is very amateur, the cinematography is crap and the performances are mostly questionable but the film has its charms as well as it's good moments. And although the film is way melodramatic and unintentionally funny at parts it still manages to be entertaining and consistently engaging. The film centers on a trio of sisters in a band called well "Sisters" lol. The plotting movers along expectedly as they have a minor rise to fame while dealing with their overprotective mother, love, drugs, sex and domestic abuse. But the film also delves a little deeper into the intricate relationships between them due most to the solid performance from Carmen Ejogo as Sister she's sultry and seemingly self centered but underneath that she's extremely protective of her sisters she basically raised as her mother had problems. Because of that her position in the group and her family is a difficult, multi layered one and the best exploration is done there. Everything else feels a little forced and flimsy. I don't wanna be to hard on the film because for the most part I enjoyed it and maybe thats because I enjoy lifetime movies. It has it's good moments and it's bad and the best I can say about Whitney Houston's involvement in the film is that she was a very talented woman earlier on in her career and I hope she's at peace now. Although a mixed bag there is enough here to merit a recommendation if this type of melodramatic, musical period piece appeals to you. I'd also like to say that even though the film is set in the past it never feels that way. The consistency is off as well as the logic and it feels very modern with some retro costumes. The film doesn't much sparkle as have a dull shine. 3/5

Jordan Sparks had a real shot at stardom. She is tall, beautiful and talented. Unfortunately, instead of following her father's direction, she chose to chase that no talent slob, Jason Derulo. This movie should not have been made. Poor writing. It took a purely sweet coming of age story and made it taudry. Sister was a beautiful young woman who had no idea how she could turn men on their heads. In this remake, she is overtly sexual to sell her singing group! WHY? When the original Sparkle was released, I was a teenager. This movie was so uplifting. It showed the truth about a little fame on the poor. Drug addiction, loan sharks, alcoholism. In the end, Sparkle and Stick make it because they believed in one another. Please stop ruining our past! Trash this version. Just stick to the original Sparkle and you'll be fine.

I have to say that I liked this version of Sparkle better than the original and I am definitely glad that they changed the story up a bit. This film is very predictable, but I did not care. I think that the cast that was assembled for this film did an excellent job. I have to admit that my main reason for going to see this film was because I wanted to see Whitney Houston in her swan song performance. Whitney (Emma) did an outstanding job in this film and I have to admit that when she sang I got a little (okay, a lot) choked up. Not just because she was singing but because I realized how much I missed her. Jordan Sparks (Sparkle) was made for this role. With this being her film debut, I am sure that we will be seeing a lot more of Jordan on screen. Carmen Ejogo (Sister) almost stole the show along with Mike Epps (Satin). Both were captivating and although you knew from the start where this relationship was heading, it did not matter because you wanted to see it play out. When Michael Beach (Rev. Bryce) hit the screen, I was looking at him and I knew that I had seen him on screen before, but I just could not place him. Whoever did his make-up did a darn good job. Tika Sumpter (Dolores) has come a long way since her days on the television soap One Life to Live. She is the "grounded" sister of the bunch and demonstrates that by having clear goals set and a strong sense of self. Derek Luke (Stix) is the group's manager and Sparkle's love interest who is just trying to do the right thing. I do have to say that there were some faux pas in the film. There were times that the group was singing without mikes and the half-naked dress would have never been acceptable during that time (I don't think). By the way, there was a women sitting in my row that was singing along with all the songs that she remembered (I was cracking up). Do I think that this will be the film of the year? No, but I do think that Director Salim Akil did a good enough job to warrant the price of a ticket. One last thing, I also got choked up again when Jordan sang at the conclusion of the film. I will be downloading that one. I give this film green light.

Sparkle (2012)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Remake of the 1976 film about sisters Sparkle (Jordin Sparks), Sister (Carmen Ejogo) and Dolores (Tika Sumpter) who decide to try and make it in the music business even though their mother (Whitney Houston) objects to them doing so after her life was ruined by an attempt. The original movie was quite predictable but it was still very much worth watching because of the performances and the music. I'm really not sure why we needed a remake and especially since this one here takes place in the 1960s just like the previous ones. Either way, for the most part this is a mildly entertaining film but there's still no question that it falls short of the original. There are actually quite a few things that do work here including the performances but especially Ejogo as the troubled sister whose decisions are going to cost her and her sisters. I thought she was incredibly believable throughout the picture no matter what the story was calling for. It could be for sexiness in the music or the downfall of the drug addiction. This here was actually the first time I had seen Sparks in anything and I thought she was fine in the role, although, like the original, her character is pretty much in the background. As for Houston, she's not too bad in the film but I must admit that I think her death somewhat hurt the movie, which is strange to say because I doubt anyone would have gone to this had it not been her final film. Hearing her character talk about drug abuse, bad choices and other things just makes you think of Houston and her death. This really has a negative impact on the film that it might not have had if the actress didn't die during the post-production. Derek Luke, Mike Epps and Curtis Armstrong are all extremely good in their parts. Another negative thing is that the majority of the music is pretty forgettable with none of the songs really jumping out at you. This includes Houston's one number, which is just pretty weak. Still, SPARKLE manages to have enough in it to make it worth sitting through even if the end result isn't nearly as good as most would have hoped for.