Following the rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom, RESPECT is the remarkable true story of the music icon’s journey to find her voice.
Growing up as a well-known preacher’s kid was difficult enough for Aretha Franklin without her ever having to deal with the additional pressure that came along with having a beautiful voice and finding the appropriate environment in which to flourish. As a young child, 9-year-old Aretha (Skye Dakota Turner) was awakened out of bed, often to be the entertainment for her famous father’s (Forest Whitaker as Rev. C. L. Franklin) dinner parties that included several well-known people in the entertainment industry, including the likes of Dina Washington (Mary J. Blige). While it didn’t seem appropriate for a child of her age, she was encouraged by the attendees. At the tender age of twelve, she ended up pregnant by someone within the family’s close circle, which was the beginning of a history of births of sons that were being raised by someone else. Shortly after the birth of her first son, Aretha’s mother and strongest encourager, Barbara Franklin (Audra McDonald) passed away and left her to deal with speechlessness and bouts of depression.
As Aretha’s singing career thrived, she and her dad constantly beefed over the type of music she wanted to produce and what he thought was best for her. Things started going very well after she was introduced to John Hammond (Tate Donovan) and then Jerry Wexler (Marc Maron) who helped her catapult into international success. Dinah Washington also gave her valuable advice about finding her own voice and singing the music that made her happy. In the meantime, her relationship and marriage to Ted White (Marlon Wayans) was fraught with abuse and caused her to fall out with her father and her sisters at a crucial point in their lives. During this dark period, Aretha was strung out on alcohol and had to hit rock-bottom before she was able to recoup after deciding to get Ted out of her life. Once she rebounded, she remarried and had the support both from making amends with her family and from finding a husband who could truly lift her up.
Born in Memphis, Tennessee, and later settling in Chicago, Aretha’s roots were planted deep and her ability to get control over her own music in later years helped to establish her as the undisputed Queen Of Soul. Her involvement in Civil Rights throughout her life helped her to have a sense of purpose while giving back to the community that supported her through the best and worst of times. Director Liesl Tommy, in her feature debut, does an excellent job casting industry heavyweights while Jennifer Hudson had been handpicked several years earlier by Aretha herself after seeing Jennifer’s performance in “Dream Girls” fifteen years ago. While Jennifer did an excellent job with the delivery of Aretha’s most popular songs, there was still a small disconnect in the overall vibe of Ms. Franklin’s personality, but I digress. In the end, Aretha’s biopic was both entertaining and educational, while enlightening her fans to the true obstacles she overcame and the strength she possessed to become a soulful legend in spite of the reality of all the personal and social struggles she went through.
In Theaters Friday, August 13th
