omg!! first off they did NOT have to kill piano man!!! i think that was the saddest part in the movie, that part and when billies mom died, but moreso when piano man died - it really choked me up

but onto happier things....this movie so beautiful!!! the last time i saw this movie was when i was little, and i didnt really get it - i remember thinkin that diana as billie was the pretty lady w/ the pretty voice tho. but last night i caught it on hbo and man! i got it, felt it and loved it! diana is such a good actress! she had me feeling her. when she was in the padded room with her head rolling about she had me FEELING her, she scared me a bit. when she was in the bathroom nodding off after she'd shot up she had me feeling her. when piano man died and she was talkin to his body she had me feeling her, that part really grabbed and didnt let go until billy dee came and got her.that to me was an oscar winning performance!! (she didnt win anything tho did she?) and speaking of billy dee, i'm in love! that is one fine peice of chocolate man! he had me wanting him to just come and sweep me off my feet! lol, its so sad that she died, cuz diana's acting had me realy rooting for her (even knwoing the outcome) and wanting her to make it. want her and billy dee to live happily ever after. and her singing. WOW, usually i LOATHE diana's voice,but mannnnn does she sounds wicked in this movie! she really did a great job singing wise and loved all those gut wrenching faces she was making during strange fruit, brilliant! made the song seep in that much more. has diana been in any other movies besides mahogony, lady sings and the wiz?

Storyline-wise,,,that movie is a true fuckin' BLAH!

But the acting was on point.

I love this movie and the soundtrack.Haven't seen it in years though.

I was just telling my daughter about this movie. We were listening to Strange Fruit and I was telling her that I was going to rent this movie for her to see.

The DVD for this comes out in a few weeks. I really like the cover image.

RipHer2Shreds said:

I'm gonna buy this!

RipHer2Shreds said:

hot damn..that has to be one of the best dvd covers..ever.


and i love this film..the acting....the production..sure sure it doesnt tell the "true" story of billy holiday..but as a stand alone movie its superb.

maybe one day billy's true story will be told...but movies should be judged on their own merrits..

sosgemini said:

I agree. I never, ever look to a film for biographical accuracy. Too much has to be streamlined to make it work as a filmed story.

I STILL use Billy Dee's line: "You want my arm to fall off"...then Billy moves into the light - SWEET direction!

This was just on cable a few days ago. I hadn't seen it since I was little forgotten just how fiiiiinnne Billy Dee was in this movie. And the way he came to her rescue when she was in trouble....I just loved that. We need more movies with strong leading black men like that. We can say that we have Denzel to fill Sidney Portier's shoes, but where is our Billy Dee????

illimack said:

It's coming soon...trust me...just hold on for a bit

This movie was/is quite good. I agree with others that the acting is decent, even though I am not a fan of Miss Ross!

RipHer2Shreds said:

sweeeeet! thats an amazing cover, it'd make a beautiful poster as well.
are there any extras on there?

Moonwalkbjrain said:

DVD Features
Region 1
Keep Case
Widescreen 16.9


Audio
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Dolby Digital Mono English


Additional Release Material
Audio Commentary 1. Sidney Furie Director
2. Berry Gordy Executive Producer/Motown Founder
3. Shelly Berger Former Motown Artist Manager
Featurettes 1. BEHIND THE BLUES: LADY SINGS THE BLUES
Deleted Scenes

illimack said:

yea thats where i saw it, hbo i think. and u r sooooo right about billy dee!

sosgemini said:[quote]

Moonwalkbjrain said:

DVD Features
Region 1
Keep Case
Widescreen 16.9


Audio
Dolby Digital 5.1 English
Dolby Digital Mono English


Additional Release Material
Audio Commentary 1. Sidney Furie Director
2. Berry Gordy Executive Producer/Motown Founder
3. Shelly Berger Former Motown Artist Manager
Featurettes 1. BEHIND THE BLUES: LADY SINGS THE BLUES
[b]Deleted Scenes[/[/b]quote]

ahhhhh

On a side note, Diana Ross lost the Academy Award in 1972 for Best Actress to Liza Minnelli's smashing performance in "Cabaret". It would've been nice for Diana to win for "Blues", but it's hard to argue with Liza's win, especially given how strong a movie "Cabaret" was. The combination of Fosse and Liza's lineage and her performance was just too much for Diana to compete with. Pus there was some nonsense controvesy with Gordy ticking off academy members with his campaign.

CynicKill said:

Yeah, I used to dog out Liza's performance...and then I saw the movie. She's brilliant in it, and the movie itself is phenomenal on so many levels. Fosse was a big talent, and this was his greatest screen accomplishment.

RipHer2Shreds said:

Agreed.

Digressing just a bit Linda Blair lost Best Supporting Actress that same year because of some controversy concerning how much work her stunt double did as opposed to her. The Academy is so easily swayed it seems. Everything hinges on slightest the hint of gossip.

CynicKill said:

I think the Linda Blair thing was more about how much voice work was hers. Mercedes McCambridge did all the voice work once she was possessed.

RipHer2Shreds said:

I still say she was robbed ya'll!

CynicKill said:

i do have to agree...she lost to tatum oneal that year, right?

CynicKill said:

figures. i 've never seen cabaret but i still think diana should won SOMETHING, her acting was just too good to be looked over like that. what did berry gordy do? what campaign?

LSB is one of my favorite films ever. Ms Ross is an amazing actress.

MariahCarey said:

Go Mariah, go!!!

RipHer2Shreds said:

I am so there with you, my friend. I saw LSTB when I was a kid and it impacted me in sooooo many ways for the rest of my life that I used to be SO SALTY because Diana didn't win for her performance; then as an adult (and what's REAL CRAZY is the fact that I live among artist expats in GERMANY!!!!), I FINALLY saw CABARET and I had to give it up to Baby Judy, er umm, I mean Liza...she did a GREAT job on this film! In all honesty, because I love the artistry of both of those ladies so much, they tied in performance for me...just equally fantastic....

Moonwalkbjrain said:

OOOH! I am SO buying this and having a screening in my home!!!!! None of my artist friends in Europe have seen this and they are going to FREAK on what a fine film this is !

Moonwalkbjrain said:

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong but I think they were at first turned off by the heavy campaigning he did for Diana (way before Harvey Weinstein) then it evolved into a the-academy-will-never-give-the-best-actress-award-to-a-black-woman campaign.

If you see BOTH performances you'd probably see it was a toss-up. But EW had an interesting take on why she didn't win. They pretty much said that while Diana gave a terrific performance, at the end of the day it wasn't Billie Holliday. That's kinda crucial when playing a real person. Liza had the benefit of playing a fictional character.