Curtis pitches a film about Cleopatra to star Deena, whom he has also married. Dreamgirls is the first live-action film to receive three nominations for Best Song; previously the Disney animated features Beauty and the Beast (1991) and The Lion King (1994) had each received three Academy Award nominations for Best Song; Enchanted (2007) has since repeated the feat. leaves Los Angeles and reconciles with Effie in Detroit. "[60] Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter was less enthusiastic, stating that while the film was "a damn good commercial movie, it is not the film that will revive the musical or win over the world". Certainly whites (particularly young people) had been listening to black music before girl groups came on the scene, and black artists had made the pop charts before. [7] "Listen", with additional music by Scott Cutler and Beyonc, and lyrics by Anne Preven, is presented as a defining moment for Deena's character late in the film. [16], Warner Bros. had retained the film rights to Dreamgirls, and agreed to co-produce with DreamWorks. head songwriter. "[77] Reports emerged of significant behind-the-scenes in-fighting between the DreamWorks and Paramount camps, in particular between DreamWorks' David Geffen and Paramount CEO Brad Grey, over decision making and credit-claiming during the Dreamgirls awards campaign. Coker, Cheo Hodari (2007). Free shipping for many products! He created a thick, roaring, echoing sound, like The Ronettes' recording of "Be My Baby. She died broke, at age 32, in 1976. And the same non-threatening, pure quality that was letting black girl groups cross over into white culture was giving young women force in the civil rights movement. And all that very famous footage of Elizabeth Eckfordgoing to school that first day. "At Motown, The Marvelettes, The Velvelettes, groups like that, are much more clearly identified as teenagers," she says, "and arguably that's why The Supremes had more longevity. He appoints the slimmer, more conventionally attractive Deena as the new lead singer, renaming them "The Dreams". That same year, four teenage girls were killed in the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. But girl groupsfrom the black The Marvelettes to the white The Shangri-Laswere popular with a mixed audience from the beginning. But for many girls, fame also offered an array of new opportunities. [68] Three months later, twenty minutes of the film specifically, the musical sequences "Fake Your Way to the Top", "Family", "When I First Saw You", and "Dreamgirls" were screened at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival, with most of the cast and crew in attendance. Outside of the one bunker-buster ballad that closed the play's first act, "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going" -- and no song has received a more powerful performance anywhere than the one given this song in the film by its new star, Jennifer Hudson, as White -- the songs are mundane, derivative and not capable of standing on their own outside the context of the musical, or other people might have recorded them in the 25 years since director Michael Bennett made "Dreamgirls" a Broadway smash. Terms of Use . [41], Four new songs were added for the film: "Love You I Do", "Patience", "Perfect World," and "Listen. Meanwhile, The Dreams have become superstars and Rainbow Records, having moved to Los Angeles is now the biggest pop business in the country. [5] At the 79th Academy Awards, the film received a leading eight nominations, winning Best Supporting Actress (for Hudson), and Best Sound Mixing. Dreamgirls was the first DreamWorks film to be issued in a high definition home entertainment format. There is even a brief appearance by a group resembling the young Jackson Five. Cast members of Munopco Music Theatre's "Dreamgirls," left to right: Taylor Hood, Krystle Tate, Arianna Rodriguez and Rebekah Gray. Dreamgirls eventually grossed $103 million in North America, and almost $155 million worldwide. The timing of 'Postman' was excellent. He eventually drops Effie, hiring his secretary Michelle Morris to replace her beginning with their 1966 New Year's Eve debut in Las Vegas as "Deena Jones & the Dreams." "[34], After Hudson was cast in November 2005, the Dreamgirls cast began extensive rehearsals with Condon and choreographers Fatima Robinson and Aakomon "AJ" Jones, veterans of the music video industry. And even if it gets much more right than it does wrong, "Dreamgirls" is still an imagining of the rough and gritty life of the R&B performer, a pop musical divertissement rather than an earthy, true-to-life account. The connection between the fictional Dreams and the real-life Supremes is underlined by costume designer Sharen Davis, whose magnificent creations accurately echo the outlandish outfits Ross, Wilson and Ballard used to wriggle into. . "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" was the Dreamgirls soundtrack's second single. Social Identities: Journal for the Study of Race, Nation and Culture, vol. All of this was part of his effortembraced by the girlsto convey a middle-class respectability. In casting Hudson, Condon recalled that he initially was not confident he'd made the right decision, but instinctively cast Hudson after she'd auditioned several times because he "just didn't believe any of the others. He looks like Ike Turner, borrows his stage moves from Wilson and has some Marvin Gaye hovering over his character. This was not what Martha Reeves thought of when she sang the song. The plan falls apart, however, as Deena, increasingly angry over how Curtis controls her career, discovers his schemes and contacts Effie, who arrives in Los Angeles with C.C., Marty, and a lawyer. Join StageAgent today and unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. The film's nominations included Best Supporting Actor (Eddie Murphy), Best Supporting Actress (Jennifer Hudson), Best Achievement in Costume Design, Best Achievement in Art Direction, Best Achievement in Sound Mixing, and three nominations for Best Song ("Listen", "Love You I Do", and "Patience"). In one scene, Effie saunters into Curtis' office and discusses Rainbow Records' latest LP, The Great March to Freedom, a spoken word album featuring speeches by Martin Luther King Jr. Curtis soon starts his own record label, Rainbow Records, out of his Detroit car dealership, appointing Effie's brother C.C. In Motown, founder Berry Gordy aimed to make music with widespread pop charts appeal. But the success of girl groups had to do with more than harmony and lyrics. The two-disc version also included a feature-length production documentary, production featurettes, screen tests, animatics, and other previsualization materials and artwork. He feels Effie's plus size figure and distinctive, soulful voice will not attract white audiences, (as Deena's voice, although more basic and generic, is more marketable). [93][94] A later scene features Curtis and the Dreams recording in the studio, while a riot rages outside. Bill Condon Tells the Story Behind 'Dreamgirls', Oscar file: 'Dreamgirls' Director Isn't Lost in Award-Buzz Dream World, After 'Dreamgirls', Geffen says goodbye to movies, "Fugees' Lauryn Hill Eyed For "Dreamgirls", After Conquering Chicago, It's On to Motown, Andre '3000' Benjamin has turned down a role in, 'Dreamgirls' Film Cast Finally Shaping Up; Usher and Fantasia Are Out, Keith Robinson and Jennifer Hudson Are In, 'American Idol' finalist Jennifer Hudson gets lead role in 'Dreamgirls' movie", "Risky Business: Directors Guild Meet the Nominees Panel", Musical Movies: 'Dreamgirls' choreographer brings hip-hop moves to Motown, "Condon, Bill: Legendary Motown Musical Destined for the Top of the Charts (1/07)", 'Dreamgirls' Takes No. As much as Deena Jones, Beyonc Knowles' character in "Dreamgirls," was modeled on Diana Ross, the film's main character, Effie White, was based on Etta James, according to composer Henry Krieger. "[59], On the December 10, 2006 episode of the television show Ebert & Roeper, Richard Roeper and guest critic Aisha Tyler (filling in for Roger Ebert, who was recovering from cancer-related surgery) gave the film "two thumbs up", with Roeper's reservations that it was "a little short on heart and soul" and "deeply conventional". But the songs were sometimes closer to real life than expected. [13], While much of the stage musical's story remains intact, a number of significant changes were made. ", Edwards, David and Callahan, Mike (1999). White,[24] but contract negotiations failed; Usher was unable to dedicate half a year to the project. A Brief History of the Salem Witch Trials. [97] In a snapshot, Ed Sullivan appears presenting the real Supremes on his show. Official Sites [104], The payola scheme used in the film's script, to which Robinson took offense, is identical to the payola scheme allegedly used by Gordy and the other Motown executives, according to sworn court depositions from Motown executive Michael Lushka, offered during the litigation between the label and its chief creative team, HollandDozierHolland. The fantastic wigs look right, too. "Introduction". Similarities to Aretha Franklin, however, are also hardly coincidental. Your Privacy Rights Ballard, the group's original lead vocalist, had a rough, grainy and more conventional rhythm and blues voice, as opposed to the light, lithesome sound of Ross' vocals. [31] The presentation of Knowles over Hudson as the sole Best Actress candidate had interesting parallels with the film itself. [23], The most crucial casting decision involved the role of Effie White, the emotional center of the story. dreamgirls.movie. "I was just overcome every week by this, these incredible visions, they were just such beautiful girls in these beautiful gowns, singing the music that I was listening to all week on the radio. [22] The filmmakers insisted on casting a relative unknown in the role, paralleling the casting of then-21-year-old Jennifer Holliday in that role for the original Broadway production. [81] The film was also nominated by the Producers Guild of America for Best Picture and the Directors Guild of America for Bill Condon's directing. [7], After preview screenings during the summer of 2006, several minutes worth of musical footage were deleted from the film due to negative audience reactions to the amount of music. Dreamgirls (2006) Full Cast & Crew See agents for this cast & crew on IMDbPro Directed by Bill Condon Writing Credits Cast (in credits order) complete, awaiting verification Produced by Music by Tom Eyen Henry Krieger Cinematography by Tobias A. Schliessler . In Motown, founder Berry Gordy aimed to make music with widespread pop charts appeal. By 1975, The Dreams give a farewell performance at the Detroit Theater, inviting Effie for the final song. [50] As of 2017[update], total domestic video sales to date are at $95.1 million. With Tom Eyen having died in 1991,[7] various lyricists were brought in by Krieger to co-author the new songs. [46], Similar to the releases of older Hollywood musicals such as The Sound of Music, My Fair Lady, and West Side Story, Dreamgirls debuted with three special ten-day roadshow engagements beginning on December 15, 2006 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City, the Cinerama Dome in Los Angeles, and the AMC Metreon 15 in San Francisco. Congratulations to Santos, the entire cast and production team for bringing "Dreamgirls" to the MunOpCo Music Theatre stage. [69][70] The resulting positive buzz earned Dreamgirls the status of "front-runner" for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Picture and several of the other Oscars as well. Similarities to Aretha Franklin, however, are also hardly coincidental. [28] Though Barrino emerged as an early frontrunner for the part,[29] Hudson was eventually selected to play Effie, leading Barrino to telephone Hudson and jokingly complain that Hudson "stole [Barrino's] part. Dreamgirls premiered on December 4, 2006 at the Ziegfeld Theatre in New York City, where it received a standing ovation. In New York, Phil Spector produced girl group songs using his famous "wall of sound," a production technique that employed a huge amount of instruments and layered track after track on top of each other. Juneika Martinez, Quisha Farrell and Victoria Spruiell are in good voice as the Stepp Sisters and Les Styles. [19][34] The scene was felt by everyone involved to be pivotal to the film, as "And I Am Telling You" was Jennifer Holliday's show-stopping number in the original Broadway musical. We lost! Towards the end, Curtis notices Magic in the front row, realizing she is his daughter. Both the Blu-ray and HD DVD versions were issued in two-disc formats. [5][47][48] The film's national release, at regular prices, began on December 25. He stuck with a select group of songwriters who were told to write songs in first person and present tense. He also brought in professional choreographers. Adapted from the 1981 Broadway musical of the same name, Dreamgirls is a film clef, a work of fiction taking strong inspiration from the history of the Motown record label and one of its acts, the Supremes. [8] With a production budget of $80 million, Dreamgirls is one of the most expensive films to feature a predominant African-American starring cast in American film history. [31], Dreamgirls received eight 2007 Academy Award nominations covering six categories, the most of any film for the year, although it was not nominated for Best Picture, Best Director, or either of the lead acting categories. Aside from the overall plot of the film and elements already present in the stage musical, many direct references to The Supremes, Motown, or R&B/soul history in general are included in the film. [19][22], Dreamgirls musical supervisors Randy Spendlove and Matt Sullivan hired R&B production team The Underdogs Harvey Mason, Jr. and Damon Thomas to restructure and rearrange the Henry Krieger/Tom Eyen Dreamgirls score so that it better reflected its proper time period, yet also reflected then-modern R&B/pop sensibilities. Girlsto convey a middle-class respectability `` Be My Baby Usher was unable to dedicate half a year to the.. Total domestic video sales to date are at $ 95.1 million to school that first day North... 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