Gaye biopic secures rights to artist's catalog
By MICHAEL FLEMING


F. Gary Gray will direct "Marvin," a biopic of Marvin Gaye, the iconic singer who was shot to death by his father in 1984. C. Gaby Mitchell ("Blood Diamond") is aboard to write the script.
David Foster will produce with Duncan McGillivray, and next week they will shop to studios and financiers a package that includes the complete music rights to Gaye's catalog, including the hits that made him Motown's biggest solo male star.

Those tunes include "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," "Heard It Through the Grapevine," "What's Goin' On" and "Let's Get It On." Plan is to have the star of the film lip synch to Gaye's recordings.

Gray ("The Italian Job") has long wanted to tell Gaye's story, but the inability to secure music rights has made it a high mountain to climb. A rival pic, "Sexual Healing," produced by James Gandolfini, who has a role, and starring Jesse L. Martin, will focus on the singer's declining years, because the filmmakers have rights to use songs only from his post-Motown career. That film, reportedly skedded to start last month in Europe, has not begun production.

Gray said his movie will cover Gaye's entire life, from his emergence at Motown through his defiance of Berry Gordy to record "What's Goin' On" and on up to his death.

"This is my passion project, the one that I wake up every day thinking about," Gray told Daily Variety. "I'm going to tell a truthful story, and there is no shortage of drama and extreme conflict in a relationship with his father that at its core is Shakespearean and tragic."This isn't the average biopic of a rock star wrestling with drugs and women, but a man whose musical awakening became a call to action that questioned critical issues like a costly foreign war, recession, environment, inequality -- issues that are relevant now."


The music rights were secured by McGillivray, the former Bank of America exec who once arranged credit lines for studios and producers in the 1980s.

"My mantra was, no music, no movie, but to me, the core story is a man who spent his whole life trying to justify and prove himself to a father who beat him down physically and later mentally," said McGillivray. "His father was a cross-dressing, alcoholic Baptist minister who was let off the hook for shooting his son."

Vet producer Foster was brought in to guide the picture, which will be a co-production of David Foster Prods. and McGillivray's Film by Humans. DFP's Ryan Heppe is co-producing.

Thanks.

Looks like they've finally updated information on who's producing this one.

I'm predicting that the film will come out next year.

What is the reasoning behind those who control the music?

So there are two films coming out, cool. Can't wait to see them.

Graycap23 said:

Because Motown's fiercely protected of it. That's why the purported Supremes film hasn't gotten off the ground yet.

shesoffthewall said:

Which one you think is gonna rock the best?

Timmy84 said:

Does this make sense?

Graycap23 said:

Shit, you can't move forward if whoever controls the music doesn't allow you to use it in a film. In many ways, it really DOESN'T make sense. This is why I initially couldn't see how "Sexual Healing" could've been made. Marvin's exile from America included concerts where he performed his Motown classics, hell he was still IN the Motown label when he left America in 1980 for England. Marvin recorded, I think, about ten or eleven tracks when he was recording the "Midnight Love" album.

In order to make it a full musical movie, you have to include all of that artist's eras or at least their most important eras. And yes Marvin's 1982-83 comeback and 1984 death were major events but the full story is more intriguing.

For some strange reason, I can't see "Sexual Healing" going forward at all. But "Marvin" is a shoo-in for 2009-2010.

Timmy84 said:

Why would they NOT let the music be used in the film? I'm puzzled on that one.

Timmy84 said:

F. Gary Gray got this, I mean you gotta watch the whole story of Marvin's life to fully feel satisfied. And I I'm a sucka for all things Motown so can't wait to see that era for Marvin in the movie. Others might appreciate the other one more since there will be more time devoted to the latter part of his life too, which seems more of a depressing movie than the first.

Graycap23 said:

'Cause they ain't got Roberta Flack supervising the music and David Foster as a co-producer, THAT'S WHY!

shesoffthewall said:

And that's maybe why that film is in trouble of being shelved. People want the full story, they're not gonna try to fall for the "Sexual Healing" one. If that one's made, it could be a TV movie. It's too short to be box-office.

The "Marvin" one looks more like the "Ray" story almost. Now if they can tell James Gandolfini and Jesse Martin to leave that movie and go over to "Marvin". I'm sure they'll get younger actors to play Marvin in his early periods.
[Edited 10/13/08 13:47pm]

Timmy84 said:

That movie is long overdue.

shesoffthewall said:

SOME people think "Dreamgirls" was the actual story.

Timmy84 said:

Sad isn't it? What a boring ass movie btw. I only needed to watch it once. Mary's book "Dreamgirls" is so much more intriguing of a story. Nothing beats the true story.
[Edited 10/13/08 13:58pm]

shesoffthewall said:

Word.

Plus the Supremes' entire music was much better than the music "Dreamgirls" had in the film. Hell, even the damn play had better production than the movie!

Timmy84 said:

Yep

So who's Gaye in the David Foster version?

shesoffthewall said:

That being said, the film didn't even try to hide its Motown influences. Besides from the Supremes, Jimmy Early as he looked in the 1970s was dressed like 1970s-era Marvin and looked like how Marvin looked facial-wise in the 1980s near the end of his life but we know he wouldn't look right for the part any damn ways!

"Jimmy got SOUL!"

JackieBlue said:

That's still to be determined but I think Jesse Martin may go and skip "Sexual Healing" and join the "Marvin" one.

That would take his career further than "Sexual Healing" will take it.

Timmy84 said:

Yeah, I really like Jesse L. Martin. I want to see whichever one he's in but I also want to see his life story.

JackieBlue said:

I feel ya. But I just have a feeling Jesse may just play in the "Marvin" one. Of course another actor, primarily a young man, will play Marvin during his formative Motown period of the sixties.

Looking forward to the "Marvin" one most, but I will check both films. Huge Marvin fan!

Jesse L. Martin is a good choice to play Marvin. I grew up listening to Marvin Gaye, so I'm really excited about this movie.

they should call it "trouble man", because that title alone describes the story of his life from beginning to end...

diamondpearl1 said:

One of them might change it to that because I can't ride with a movie with "Sexual Healing" in the title. That's the first thing the Jesse Martin film messed up on.