Aretha Franklin's revolutionary version of the Otis Redding song RESPECT is the title of a biopic that is primarily about celebrating the feminist civil rights icon. Aretha Franklin herself was involved in the early phase of the production, and she gave her blessing to the casting of Jennifer Hudson in the main role. Jennifer Hudson and Skye Dakota Turner as young Aretha deliver strong, convincing, and thrilling performances in the music numbers. The scenes in which Aretha and the white musicians of the 'Muscle Shoals Studios' work on her recording, breaking down the songs into musical elements and gradually creating the perfect sound are similarly fascinating. The film doesn't say much about Aretha Franklin's real life and remains strangely decorous. Aretha asserts herself against her violent first husband Ted White, and he takes his hat off when he hears Aretha sing 'Think' on stage, as if the patriarch can be so easily defeated. The screenplay condenses some events but lets Aretha Franklin appear less like a vibrant and contradictory woman and more like an icon, like in her famous gospel performance at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church which turned into the album 'Amazing Grace' and her mental victory over alcoholism. It's all a bit too one-dimensional. The supporting roles are well-cast, with Forest Wittaker, who plays Aretha's father Clarence with calm ambivalence, and Marc Maron as producer Jerry Wexler who has to convince Franklin to work with white musicians. The famous performances that are recreated are still thrilling, and the experienced Jennifer Hudson succeeds as best as she possibly can in transmitting the feeling of Aretha Franklin's stage presence.

Tom Dorow (INDIEKINO MAGAZIN)

Translation: Elinor Lewy