I really love musical biographies like Ray - that genre of movie making are turning out to be my favorite types of films.

So what's next? What would you like to see: Marvin Gaye, James Brown, Stevie Wonder, or Rick James? Who's story would be the most interesting and what actor would you like to see play their roles?

Here is a list of my favorite Top 10 music biography based films:

1. Purple Rain
2. The Jacksons: An American Dream
3. Ray
4. The Temptations
5. Lady Sings The Blues (Billie Holiday)
6. The Five Heartbeats (this is fiction but what the hell)
7. Little Richard
8. Salina
9. What's love Got to do With it
10.La Bamba

I would like to see Marvin Gaye's story, runner up would be James Brown.

Holla Back!

I love La Bamba. It's one of my favorite music bios. What's Love Got to Do with It was also pretty good, but a bit lop-sided for my tastes. It painted Ike as absolutely horrible and Tina as nothing more than a victim in some ways. That would have been fine if they had done a better job of showing what drew them together. Terrific performances though. Angela Bassett was amazing.

As far as bios I'd like to see, Bessy Smith is at the top of my list. This thing has been talked about forever and ever, with nothing to show for it. For a while in the early '90s, I heard Niki Haris' name attached to it. Then a few years back, I'd heard that it was going to be an HBO film, and Queen Latifah was to star. I think she could have been brilliant in the role - she looks and sounds enough like her, and a good director could have brought a fantastic performance out of her.

i'm looking forward to the johnny cash bio pic, but i'm kinda scared of the casting - joaquin phoenix as the man in black (hell-eaux: JOHN CUSACK woulda been PERFECT!) and reese witherspoon as june carter cash??? eh, maybe, but i have my reservations on this one. plus...nothing could hold a candle to the man's legacy - nothing can even hold a candle to the way cash told his own story in his autobiographies - he was brilliant at mixing humility and spirituality with a great sense of humor and just a twinge of rebellious bad-ass. i recommend his autobio "cash" to everyone - if you aren't a fan when you pick it up, you will be when you put it down. to me, he represented what america ought to be - what we are when we're at our best.

whew. anyway. yeah.

Marvin Gaye would be fab...but it would have to be done right and by the right actor.

His life story is quite facinating and would be good for the silver screen.

btw...I think the Five Heartbeats was loosely based on The Dells...or maybe I'm thinking that because they did the song "love is a house"???

Also, has a *true* bio of the Supremes ever been done...not just that awful "Sparkle" (yeah, I said it...) or Dreamgirls...

No, and it likely never will. Though Michael Bennett did, in fact, base Dreamgirls on The Supremes, he can never admit to it publicly. He'd get in too, too much trouble.

Including fictional films, in no particular order, these come to mind:

The Commitments
The Buddy Holly Story
Coal Miner's Daughter
The Wonders
One Trick Pony
Bird
Sid & Nancy
24hour Party People

I want to see a Gram Parsons biopic.

Anxiety said:

I had not heard of this. I wanna see it.

The Sam Cooke Story would be great too.

A decent Hendrix biography.

sinisterpentatonic said:

co sign

i'd also like to see a decent sid and nancy movie. the one thats out is horrible. it paints nancy as damn near retarted and ugly...and sid as just crazy.
i read the book her mother wrote and the way she describe nancy was totally opposite..as a person.

i'd also like 2 see one on prince, james brown and michael jackson/the jackson family...american dream was cool but it only went up 2 '84..."jackson family vaules" should seriously b turned in2 a movie..and the vh1 movie they did on mike was horrible..script wise and casting wise.

Stax said:

Coal Miners Daughter! The Loretta Lynn story! I totally forget about that one. That is definately in my top 10 4 sure. Thanks 4 the reminder. Tommy Lee Jones and the actress who played Carrie did an excellent job!

What was the Bird about? I think Andre from Outcast is sloted to play Jimmy Hendricks? So this is already in production.

goat2004 said:

Forest Whitaker as Charlie Parker. Directed by Clint Eastwood.