Movie Review: Get On Up (2014)
Written by Anthony Sargon
James Brown: The Godfather of Soul. As one of the most recognizable icons in music history, it was only a matter of time before his story was brought to the big screen. But we’ve become all too familiar with the tropes of the modern-day musical biopic, which is why Get On Up is such a refreshing addition to the genre. Not only does it play around with the biopic formula, but it also boasts one of the year’s most impressive performances, courtesy of Chadwick Boseman.
The film chronicles the life of James Brown (Chadwick Boseman) by transporting the audience to select moments of his life. The film’s chronology is turned on its head, which is one of the reasons it feels so different, and believe me, an artist of James Brown’s magnitude deserves “different.”
Biopics are always a challenge. How in the world do you condense someone’s entire life – especially someone as recognizable as James Brown – into a two-hour narrative? Director Tate Taylor clearly understands that challenge, so rather than trying shove as much stuff as he can fit in the film, he tries to paint a broad but still personal picture of James Brown by seamlessly hopping back and forth in time and only focusing on key moments of his life.
Of course, these moments are going to include a traumatic childhood and an eventual downward spiral, but Taylor also provides us with political and cultural context behind everything. It all feels relevant and impactful. Not only did James Brown change the face of music; he had a massive impact on culture and politics. I do think the film took it easy on Brown and didn’t take a long enough time to address his addiction and personal issues, but with two hours to work with and a long list of accomplishments, perhaps it makes sense. Mini-series are really the only way to tell a complete story.
We have yet to get into awards season, but I really hope that Chadwick Boseman’s amazingly charismatic performance gets an Academy Award nomination. He’s simply magnetic as James Brown, and captures his essence like I’ve rarely seen done before in a biopic. For 139 minutes, he was James Brown. Nelsan Ellis was also great as Brown’s longtime partner Bobby Byrd, but I have to call out Dan Aykroyd for a totally phoned-in performance as Brown’s manager, Ben Bart.
The Verdict:
Get On Up is an amazingly well-realized musical biopic that boasts one of the year’s strongest performances. Now “get up offa that thing” and go to a theater.
Numerical Score: 8/10
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