Hot off the trails of Mean Girls, we have another adaptation upon adaptation. This time, adapted from a book to a film, to a musical and finally to the film musical we see in front of us. The Color Purple brings the songs and story from the Broadway musical, featuring a variety of returning cast members from the stage production. The film also casts some fresh faces in iconic roles, to build out the cast to a genuinely star studded lineup, from stage, screen and music, everyone is showing up and showing off in this reimagining.
The story of The Color Purple varies slightly from version to version, this one takes on a much lighter approach to the heavy subject matter of the original. A lot of this levity is thanks to the music itself, being so glossy and imaginative in its presentation. The songs often take you out of the gritty world around the characters, and even during emotionally rich songs, gives you a break from the bleakness of the story.
Celie (played in her youth by Phylicia Pearl Mpasi) lives with her father and younger sister Nettie (Halle Bailey). Celie is abused by her father and gives birth to two of his children. He takes them away from her, saying he is going to “give them to God”, ripping her away from the chance to be a mother. Soon after this, Mister (Colman Domingo) tries to pursue Nettie, instead being told by their father that he can have Celie as his wife. She goes with Mister, to live with him. We see him be immediately abusive to her, situating her right back to the same environment she found herself trapped in at home. Soon Nettie runs away from her father and attempts to stay with Celie and Mister. Mister drives Nettie away after she rejects his advances and tells her that she can never return or he will kill them both. The sisters are driven apart and Celie is left without anyone around her to rely on.
A few years on, word goes around that Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson) is returning to town after making it big as a blues singer in Memphis. Mister is delighted with this news and is quite fond of Shug, inviting her to stay over with him and Celie (Now played by Fantasia Barrino). Once Shug arrives, she takes a liking to Celie, opening her eyes to a world where she can be more for herself and fight for what she wants.
There is a side story with Shug and the relationship that Celie and her share, along with an impactful story of Sofia (Danielle Brooks) and her willingness to fight for who she is in an increasingly hostile world.
For me, I found these two side plots a lot more compelling than the main narrative that is presented to us. One of sisters being separated and their connection staying strong through years of no communication and the wonder if they will ever be able to reunite again. The plot takes a while to get going after our initial separation and then gets side tracked once Shug comes into the picture. I found Celie’s character to lack motivation in the first half of the film, not seeming to want anything from life. I understand that in the source material, we see more that she had been beaten down and broken by life, so becomes meek and moldable to those around her. Barrino portrays this well in her performance but it is hard to keep this empathy on track for your central character when there is elation and comedy around her that she doesn’t get to be involved in.
There is great payoff in the final act of the film though as we see Celie grow more as a character, standing up for who she wants to be, with great emotional resolution.
With emotional resolution, I think Sofia’s story is the most impactful, played so perfectly by Danielle Brooks, towing the line of the comedy and drama she is expected to deliver, along with an incredible singing voice to go along with it. She felt like the heart of the film for me, having one of the best monologues that a dinner table scene has seen in a long long time.
The other cast members are equally as impressive vocally and as a screen presence during the songs, with engaging creation and thoughtful songs, letting us in on the characters or driving the story forward. Unlike other recent musical films, this one has songs that all serve a distinct purpose in their inclusion.
I will say that while the presentation was visually impressive, with pretty clean choreography, sometimes the choice of sets or representation didn’t always align with the emotions of the song. For a select few numbers, it felt like we were watching a stage production directly put to screen through very specific dance routines and sets.
The camera work was two sides of the coin for me, because Dan Laustsen bathes the film in a gorgeous, golden Georgia sun with sweeping and grand camera movements. The exterior scenes of the film are exactly how they should be, even translating to the blue hue of the bayou. My only issue with the look of the film is some of the interior photography, which opts for the same golden rays of sun, but really overexposes the windows of the houses giving a lot of the characters a silhouetted look to them. While some of these shots look really pleasing to the eye, they distracted me from the content of the scene when I was unable to see the characters interacting fully.
While I don’t think this is the most true to source retelling of this story, it certainly earns its place among the existing entries. The uplifting spin on the story and perfect casting make this a spectacle to watch on the big screen and one I can see people coming back to for the songs alone. It is unfortunate to see that not all of the performances in the film have been recognised for their merit but seeing Danielle Brooks as a contender for best supporting actor across multiple award bodies is really encouraging. I only hope that we get to see more from all of these actors, doing more emotionally intelligent and hopefully singing roles.
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