Blu-ray Review: ‘Get on Up’

Posted By: Alexon: January 06, 2015In: DVD/Blu-Ray Reviews, Movie ReviewsNo Comments

Biopics are a dime a dozen these days and, more often than not, they don’t do the subject justice. Chadwick Boseman has had the pleasure (or misfortune) of playing two extremely iconic figures but, to his chagrin, the actual movies weren’t that good. The first was the Jackie Robinson biopic 42, which everyone said was utterly disappointing, and the second is the James Brown biopic Get on Up, from The Help director Tate Taylor.

Get on Up follows the life story of The Godfather of Soul, Mr. James Brown. Jumping back and forth from his older years to his younger ones, the film takes us through his poor childhood, after eventually being abandoned by both his parents, to a brief stint in jail and given a second chance when he meets a singer and eventual long-time friend Bobby Byrd (Nelsan Ellis). It’s at that moment Brown’s life changed and he began taking serious control of his life and singing, earning a career with the help of The Famous Flames. When the record label said the Flames weren’t needed, they ended up as part of his band but eventually everyone went their separate ways. The film continues from there, focusing on his both his massive influence as well as a bit on his troubled times later in life, like his arrests and use of drugs.

Get on Up is an ok film, I’ll discuss my main reasons why you should see it below, but I’d like to start off with why it felt rather disappointing. Like many biopics, it tries to cram an entire life into 140 minutes, which is difficult for anybody. Rather than focusing on a certain set of years, it focuses on his entire life and prevents us from getting too deep into areas that deserve exploring. For example, it’s great to see how he becomes The Godfather of Soul (which Tate explores thoroughly enough), but you see things start to break down around him and they are merely brushed over. For example, the man had a problem with drugs and was arrested many times in his later years. From this movie you get the sense he dabbled in drugs for a bit and then, after being arrested once, he cleans up his act and makes amends with Bobby Byrd. If I didn’t know Brown’s story I’d think he was a man that saw highs and lows but managed to clean-up well before he passed, which isn’t necessarily true (and I know it’s just a movie).

There are only two reasons why I’d recommend seeing this mediocre film. The first is the music. If you’re a fan of James Brown at all, you’re going to love the listening to it with excellent performances and lavish set pieces. It’s a concert atmosphere that makes your temporarily forget you’re watching a movie. The second and most important reason for watching this movie is Chadwick Boseman. The guy truly becomes The Godfather of Soul and it is incredible to watch his seamless transformation from a fun, teenage Brown to one that seems like he’s losing it all at 65. Not only that, Boseman perfectly captures the flavor and style of Brown’s demeanor and dance moves so well there are times you can’t believe it isn’t the real Brown. It’s an impressive thing to behold and a reason why you should keep Mr. Boseman on your radar, for when he gets the opportunity to dig this deep into a role and the actual movie is good, you’ll be finding him receiving his first Oscar nomination.

As a fan of James Brown I couldn’t help but be simultaneously disappointed and proud of Get on Up. Boseman does the funk and soul legend proud through his fantastic performance but, excluding the music, the rest of the film just feels rather flat and uninspired. The supporting cast did a nice job and the picture looked good, but it didn’t always feel as real as it should have been, instead it was a mostly glossy biopic that gave Boseman an incredible opportunity to shine and flex his acting chops.

Movie Rating: An Oscar nominee worthy performance and great tunes can’t elevate this pic above mediocrity (5.9/10)

The Blu-ray/DVD/Digital HD combo pack comes with a bunch of special features. My favorite bits had to do with learning about Chadwick Boseman becoming Mr. Brown. He was initially reluctant to take the part after playing Jackie Robinson but when he decided to try out, he had a very short time to learn moves and dialogue for a screen test. What he accomplished in that time span was unreal and the supporting cast, like Viola Davis and Octavia Spencer, testify to Boseman’s prowess.

Below is the full list of features: