The Color Purple

Grade: B-

I once heard a very smart theatre actor/director say that characters in musicals sing because the emotions are so strong, that speaking it is not enough. Ideally, the most heightened moments of acting should be during the songs. The cast of The Color Purple are masters at suiting the action to the word, and letting that action propel them into the musical numbers. I’m not able to hum a single song from it, but I enjoyed many and loved a few in the moment. There’s an early one by a waterfall, where kicking up water is part of the choreography.

I have never read the book, seen the show, or seen the 1985 Spielberg film. This was my first taste of any Color Purple. It’s probably not your first rodeo, though, so I’ll talk more about performances and technical aspects than walk you through the plot. We are at the Georgia coast in 1909, then end at about 1945. 2004 American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino stars in the role played by Whoopi Goldberg 38 years ago. We already knew Barrino could sing, and she is a powerhouse actress as well. This is deep material she has to navigate through, but she carries the movie, and I’m glad she’s back on the map.

23-year-old Halle Bailey (Ariel from The Little Mermaid earlier this year) plays Barrino’s sister, and has at least one showstopping duet with her. My favorite supporting performance, in a large ensemble that has many great ones, comes from Danielle Brooks (Taystee from Orange is the New Black). She plays Sophia – the Oprah Winfrey role. She is funny, loud, confident, and “Hell No!” is one of my favorite songs here. Taraji P. Henson, Colman Domingo, H.E.R., David Alan Grier, Louis Gossett Jr., and a couple surprise cameos all make strong impressions. I spotted a handful of Atlanta actors, too, particularly my friends Brad Raymond, Chase Steven Anderson, and Charles Green, whose character gets what he deserves.

Two significant issues I had are difficult to talk about without spoiling. One, I guess, is more about the story than this movie. I had a hard time buying a character’s quick drastic redemption. This person becomes the polar opposite of what they were for years, and given everything they did, it’s hard to believe they were forgiven, much less welcomed at a dinner table again. The other matter of contention I had was the recasting of a character to play their older version. I wanted to see this performer again, and wish the makeup department had just done their magic to age them up.

As my first exposure to the story, I can only speak for this Color Purple. It is lengthy, quite heavy-handed, but contains powerful moments, excellent acting, and even better singing. But all the way through, I could sense everyone trying so hard – particularly to jerk as many tears as possible. At least as many as Barrino sheds. Is there an Oscar category for Best Crying? Or Most Crying?

Grade: B-