Ray
Even if you only see one movie this year, make sure you see Ray.
Other than the obvious fact that Ray is about the life of Ray Charles, it is a little bit difficult to describe exactly what the movie is about. It is a little bit about a musical genius finding his voice and creating something that had never been heard. It is a little bit about the trials of a black man trying to survive and succeed in America when racism was a way of life for just about everybody. It is a little bit about a blind man learning to survive in a world that was just as likely to take advantage of a lone blind man as to have pity on a lone blind man.
It is a little bit about a man's lack of understanding of how to be a father or a husband. It is a little bit about the lavish, contradictory life of a musician on the road. It is a little bit about a man learning to face and deal with the tragic death of his younger brother when they were just boys. It is a little bit about the tough love of a mother who knew how to fight and scrape to make a living in an unjust world.
But the peak of the movie is about a man falling into addiction to heroin, how destructive the drug can be those that use it and those that around it and how Ray Charles finally faced his demons.
Watching Ray, you are not going to learn about a good dad or a good husband. You are not going to learn about friends that stick together on the ride to the top and enjoy the fruits of success together. You are not going to learn about art triumphing over business.
You are going to get a pretty open view of business in the music world, of people taking advantage of each other and power struggles that go on around a rising star.
All of this is wrapped in a beautiful movie that is driven by the amazing soundtrack of Ray Charles' music. If you have any appreciation for music, you will be thrilled while you watch this movie even as you see people at their worst. The soundtrack to Ray included digitally re-mastered versions of some of his best and favorite songs. Simply put, this movie is a thrill to hear. Even better, Jamie Foxx's performance as Ray was much more believable than I ever expected going into the movie.
All of the actors and characters in this movie are joy to watch on screen, even the ones that you can't help as they destroy their lives. Kerry Washington plays Ray's wife, Della Bea Robinson, and nearly stills the show in several scenes. She is beautiful and believable as she tries to balance the battle between being the dutiful wife and fighting for her family.
Ray is almost 3 hours long but when the movie was over, I found myself wanting more. This was nothing like the pain I felt watching the first Lord of the Rings movie where I found myself rooting for the end of the movie a full hour and a half before the joyful appearance of the credits. The number of open story lines at the end of Ray was a little bit frustrating as I'm sure VH-1 could produce at least a 3 part mini-series to tie up some of the loose ends. But, this was the story Ray Charles wanted to tell and it does a wonderful job doing so.
So, even if you only see one movie this year, make sure you see Ray.
Posted by on 11/20 at 12:03 PM