I was flipping through channels when I landed on "The Fighting Temptations" and after watching it for like 4 minutes (that's all I could take before the dark and violent thoughts started to creep in), I realized that Beyonce is a singer in pretty much all of her movies. Upon coming to this startling epiphany, I had to ask myself, "Is that really acting?" Personally, I don't really think it is, but some people may disagree with me. I've watched several artist's who have done films and Beyonce is at the bottom for me in the 'artists who act or try to act' department. Even Justin Timberlake and Alicia Keys have stepped away from their artist personas on their films. Beyonce is either comfortable playing singers or wants to play it safe by playing characters who sing so she can put that extra back-slash behind her name, ie artist/designer/actress/Sasha Fierce. Someone needs to let her know that playing yourself doesn't always win you Oscars, because she's slowly turning into the female Steven Segal. What do ya'll think?

estelle81 said:

i completely agree. playing a singer in a movie is not really acting if thats what you normally do.

She sticks to easy roles because she really is not an actress. Beyonce has talent when it comes to entertainment in music. but really its sometimes ackward and strange seeing her in movies

I like her but she cannot act. She looks nervous for the entire movie.

She's supposed to be not be playing a singer in her next movie.

I remember Diana Ross playing a singer, or singing in a lot of her movies. She wasn't criticized for it then.

I think the internet has turned people into bitchy, nagging housewives that have to nitpick everything people do!!!

Paris9748430 said:

Diana only played one major role as a legendary singer (Billie Holiday), she didn't sing in "Mahogany" or "Out of Darkness", "The Wiz" was a musical and "Double Platinum", she played a singer.

Nonetheless her acting was good in each of the films, much less so in "The Wiz" tho.

Paris9748430 said:

Okay, simmer down...it's going to be okay. I just don't like to throw around titles like 'actor' or 'musician' loosely is all. I don't think she's terrible at what she's doing, because she's a good singer, but I have a hard time calling her a credible actress based off of the films she's done. There are lots of artists who have done films that I like or love. I love many of Queen Latifah's films (some with her singing, some without) and also Will Smith and both of them started out as artists. I even liked Justin Timberlake in "Alpha Dog" and Mos Def in "16 Blocks"; and I still absolutely adore Madonna in "Who's That Girl?".

If her next movie has absolutely no singing from her and she does a good job, I have no problem giving her props, but until then, I question her acting ability because it's overshadowed by her singing ability in pretty much all of her films.

I don't think Diana Ross sings in all of her films, and I remember hearing many people criticize her for 'The Wiz' and I actually like that movie...moreso the soundtrack than the actual film I should say.

Paris9748430 said:

she's an okay actress. I was excited to see her in austin powers 3, but after that, it was the same shit and I felt like I was watching beyonce more than her characters cause she was singing anyway

I'm looking forward to cadillac records and obsessed though to see if she has acting chops after all

TotalAlisa said:

i completely disagree! hoorah! even if the character in the movie has the same name as the performer, it's still acting, because it is doubtful the performer is truly him/herself.

Yeah acting is about becoming another person, but using elements of your own experience within the role. Beyonce IS acting in any movie that isnt called "The Beyonce Knowles Story", regardless if she is playing a singer. I mean she is someones daughter, does that mean if she plays someones daughter in a movie she isnt acting?

purplesweat said:

so true.....

dawntreader said:

in beyonce's case, seriously her characters seem to all be the same. IMO just one dimensional and kind of fake.

TotalAlisa said:

Seriously, if Justin Timberlake had done 4 movies in a row that were musicals or based off of singers, many people on here would probably be agreeing with me on my observation and crucifing the guy, but even he chose to take on characters that had nothing to do with singing. I don't care who the singer is who is trying to transition over to acting, because my response wouldn't change even if I liked that person. If someone plays similar characters in the majority of their films, I'm not going to praise that person and call them an actress/actor. For me, watching a Beyonce movie is like watching a Vince Vaghn movie...not terrible, but not what I consider real acting. Oh well, at least she's being consistent even at the risk of being boring and predictable.

purplesweat said:

That bolded statement just defines the majority of the Prince: non-music forum in a nutshell for me. There's not been a day where I haven't read a thread bitching and/or nagging about some artist. I just hope I don't see this individual make bitchy, nagging responses on any other thread because I'll be sure to call him/her on it. Practice what you preach, my friend.

lastdecember said:

As long as Papa Knowles isn't playing her father and it's a person very different from herself that she makes believable, but if she's just going to be playing someone's daughter in a film and that's it, then there would have to be alot of depth to that character for me to call it acting; but that's just me. Meryl Streep could just play someone's daughter in a film; and, as much as I love her films, I wouldn't shower her with praise for playing a seemingly one-dimensional part. The character would have to have either a great deal of depth or some type of interesting plotline to make her relevant and important in that film and even though that's more the scriptwriter's responsibility, the actress still has to make it work; and that's when real acting comes into play. If I got the part of a nurse for a zoo vet in a film, I could make the role very credible because I'm a veterinary technician in my daily life. Even though it's not exactly my current occupation, it's pretty similar to what I do normally, so I wouldn't consider myself a real actress for that part, but that's just me.

If the character doesn't have any real importance in the film's plot, than she would be like an extra...kinda like Fergie in "Grindhouse". She was like a glorified extra to me. She had maybe 3 scenes before being killed off. They could have cut her character completely out of the film and the movie wouldn't have changed any. For me, credible acting requires just as much skill as credible singing does. There are actors and actresses who only sell movie tickets because people like the way they look, just like there are artists who only sound good in the studio and draw crowds because of their images. Some porn stars act out skits for their films, but I'm not going to call them credible actors for it; I'm just saying. Skinamaxx

estelle81 said:

I'm just as guilty as everyone else here. We all are. I was definitely including myself in that statement as well.

She would be if she could act at all, but she can't Although they showed a clip from Cadillac Records on Tyra & I do think she's improved a bit. I doubt I'll have to eat my words completely, but I'm guessing this will be her best performance to date. Hell, I hope she improves since she won't fucking go away

Paris9748430 said:

I think there was a review that says that she's too skinny for the role and Etta James personally did not like her for the role. I also think that if Beyonce wasn't so overrated and she uses her singing and dancing talents without being a copycat, there would be no issue of debate or nagging when it comes to her. You have singers, dancers, actresses who's looks can rival hers, but are so underrated. Eventually, the public is going to really get tired of her and you see a testament of it right here and now. I mean no harm about this statement.

Acting requires talent, so the question must be answered: "no".

myloveis4ever said:

It is so good to see some people see her as I do. In reality