The tag line for the latest biopic about an
American icon reads: “Find out what it means.”
Good luck with that.
After more than two hours of the new messy
Aretha Franklin biopic “Respect,” it’s not clear
what it means, wasting a lot of superb screen
talent in the slapdash process.
This time it’s Jennifer Hudson portraying the
Queen of Soul — a few months after Cynthia
Erivo played Franklin in a National Geographic
TV series — and you won’t be able to leave the
theater without a lot of respect — yes, R-E-S-P-E-
C-T — for Hudson’s abilities.
But a meandering, unfocused look at the first
three decades of Franklin’s life will also leave you
saying a little prayer for the filmmakers. After all,
if you come for the queen, you best not miss.
This is a miss.