by Heath Lynch, Contributing Writer
It’s that time of year again: The time in which all of the great awards-caliber films are released. And in between them, there’s inevitably one or two films of a very specific genre. Films meant to prey on nostalgia, and the warm embrace of good music. The standard biopic about a famous musician or musical group that’s desperately hoping to nab some awards consideration, especially after the recent validation of the genre in the wake of Bohemian Rhapsody. This year, we have a new film about one of the most acclaimed Black musicians of all time — Whitney Houston. Unfortunately, this film doesn’t live up to her legacy.
Houston was truly a generational talent, and her early death is a tragedy. That much is undeniable. The Voice is inarguably one of the greatest of all time. But Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody is truly mediocre at best. A film so lacking in clear vision and confidence in itself that it feels obligated to put Houston’s name in the title just so you know who it’s about, instead of it being able to stand on its own. A clone of every other melodramatic musician biopic you’ve ever seen before, complete with all the tropes and clichés you’ve come to expect. It never does anything noteworthy or worthwhile to make itself stand out from the crowd, but also never does anything so egregiously terrible that would make me hate it either. This just… exists. The definition of ‘meh.’
This new biopic is brought to us by Kasi Lemmons of Eve’s Bayou fame. Most recently, she put out Harriet to mixed reviews a few years back. Lemmons tells the story of Houston, played by Naomi Ackie, by starting at the beginning of her career in 1983 when she was discovered. From there, we follow her as she makes her debut on The Merv Griffin Show, breaks into the pop music scene, and eventually peaks in popularity with her singing of the national anthem at Super Bowl XXV and starring in The Bodyguard. From there, we dive into her melodramatic, tumultuous struggles with her husband, family, and friends as she spirals out of control with her addiction to drugs in the most generic fashion you could predict.
I’ll say up front: I would go so far as to say that if you are a fan of Houston, you will probably have fun with this picture regardless. It will take you on a trip down memory lane, wash you over with nostalgia, and give you the music that will soothe your soul. But if you’re actually coming into this wanting a quality film, you’re going to be a bit disappointed. It just doesn’t pack any discernible punch.
The first act of this film is just way too paint-by-numbers. Whitney is discovered upon her first time in front of a record executive, instantly signs a record deal, nails her first TV show appearance, and makes a billboard number one hit all within the first 25 to 30 minutes, without any amount of conflict or struggle. The way our characters have conversations throughout this process don’t feel natural at all. People introduce themselves by their full name, or speak in clichés. It just feels so fake and forced.
As Houston’s rise to fame continues, you don’t even get the chance to appreciate her music. In fact, the movie spends more time focusing on her performance at the Super Bowl than it does on most of her songs. I would even go so far as to say that almost 70% of this runtime is just dedicated to three songs: “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me),” the “The Star Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl, and the Dolly Parton cover “I Will Always Love You.” It’s as if all the other great music Houston created throughout her career is just meaningless. That’s not to say that it doesn’t exist in this film; it’s just relegated behind these three other songs and moments. Towards the end of the movie, they finally decide to take the time to start showcasing her other hits, including her iconic medley at the 1994 American Music Awards, but overall the movie doesn’t do justice to her catalog of work.
Instead, what does get screen time, especially in the second half of the film, is a massive series of tropes, clichés, and stereotypes that will undoubtedly make your eyes roll. Do you want to see Whitney have a relationship conflict with her husband? You got it. Except that it’s going to be shallow and underdeveloped. You’ll see them get mad at each other in one scene where Whitney is vacuuming the house, where they get in each other’s faces and raise their voices, and that’s pretty much it. Any allegations of affairs, or threats of physical violence are dropped and not mentioned again. Do you want to see Whitney actually struggle with drugs? Well, you’ll see drug paraphernalia and her buying drugs for days, but we never see it destroy her life. We’re just told it’s ruining her life as we see her make sad faces and get high on stage, but there are no consequences to her actions. Do you want to see Whitney being held accountable for her actions? Too bad, because even when the movie decides to show her going to rehab, all it gives us is three minutes of her in a swimming pool. We never see her struggle with it, never see her detox. None of that. She swims in a pool, and it’s over.
Every hard-hitting blow that they could deliver throughout this movie to make it feel more realistic and believable is neutered to make this story digestible to the masses. The movie chickens out and minimizes Whitney’s tragic struggles. This only serves to elevate the melodrama throughout the movie because most of the struggles don’t hold weight.
It doesn’t help that a lot of these performances are not nearly as good as they could be. Admittedly, Ackie is doing a tremendous job as Houston. She’s not singing, though I don’t fault her for that because recreating one of the most legendary voices of all time would be nearly impossible. But she does a great job of lip-syncing to the lyrics. Additionally, the emotion that she displays makes her characterization magnetic. Stanley Tucci is also terrific as Clive Davis, Whitney’s record producer who eventually turns into a dear friend. But outside of that, meh. Ashton Sanders feels like he’s in a parody movie as husband Bobby Brown. Clarke Peters is incredibly one-note as Whitney’s father, John Houston. Nafessa Williams does a decent job as Robyn Crawford, but her character is incredibly mishandled throughout the film, limiting her impact on the picture.
In fact, many characters are mishandled. The movie doesn’t give the time of day to almost any character outside of Houston. Everyone becomes generic surface-level caricatures of themselves, and their stories are usually left unresolved. Robyn just disappears at one point in the movie, and we never see any kind of final conclusion to her dynamic with Whitney, which was the basis for conflict early in the film. There are also characters whose beginning we never see. This is not as bad as never seeing the end of their story, but there are some people who just show up and we don’t even know their names, let alone how they relate to the already-established characters. When you do this, you’re actually doing a disservice to Whitney herself, because these people were an important part of her life. So by not giving them their due diligence, and resolving their stories as they relate to Whitney, you’re actually short changing Whitney and making the film feel a bit hollow.
What I will say is worthwhile is the music. While the film doesn’t evenly handle Houston’s music, it does make it very presentable. The recreation of her music videos, how she looks on stage, and the energy that flows through the camera is energizing. Hearing “How Will I Know,” “I’m Every Woman,” “Higher Love,” and “It’s Not Right but It’s Okay” is intoxicating. If you are of a certain age where you remember hearing these tracks on the radio, or seeing these videos on MTV, it’s going to put a smile on your face. This is a big part of why Ackie’s performance works so well: She sells these moments. There is fun to be had here, even if it’s predictable and unoriginal.
The fact of the matter is that there have been movies made in this genre for decades. The blueprint is easy to copy, so you need to do something original to stand out. Otherwise you’re doomed to tumble into the pitfalls of mediocrity. Recent examples that succeeded in doing something unique would be films like Straight Out of Compton, which decided to go in such a realistic and gritty direction that you can’t peel your eyes away from it. It’s so raw and unfiltered. Or, you could do something like Rocketman,which turned into a musical fantasy, larger than life itself, with musical numbers turned into otherworldly performances. That’s what makes those films special and memorable. I Wanna Dance with Somebody doesn’t have anything like this. While it has its entertaining moments, I honestly would’ve rather just watched a documentary about Houston. Especially when you account for this being two-and-a-half hours long. Yikes.
As I said, if you’re a fan of Houston, you will probably have a great time watching I Wanna Dance with Somebody. Even if you’re not a fan, you can still have fun with this picture. But it is still a rudimentary experience. Houston was a musical wizard, a beacon of talent, that deserves much better than this generic biopic that’s virtually no different than dozens of other films from this genre.
Score: 5/10
I Wanna Dance with Somebody is currently playing in theaters
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