Respect

"Find out what it means."

2021 2h 25m EN

👍

6.8

SOLID

★6.8TMDB · 488

DramaMusicHistory

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The rise of Aretha Franklin’s career from a child singing in her father’s church’s choir to her international superstardom.

“Find out what it means.”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Jennifer Hudson
Aretha Franklin
Forest Whitaker
C. L. Franklin
Marlon Wayans
Ted White
Audra McDonald
Barbara Franklin
Mary J. Blige
Dinah Washington
Marc Maron
Jerry Wexler
Tituss Burgess
Reverend Dr. James Cleveland
Saycon Sengbloh
Erma Franklin

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Liesl Tommy
Writers: Tracey Scott Wilson, Callie Khouri, Tracey Scott Wilson
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America, Canada

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $55M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Earned back only 57% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 5 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: United States of America, Canada.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Liesl Tommy, shot by Kramer Morgenthau. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Kris Bowers. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Avril Beukes shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Jennifer Hudson and Forest Whitaker and Marlon Wayans carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Liesl Tommy directs. Kramer Morgenthau behind the camera. Kris Bowers scores. Avril Beukes cuts. A commercial under-performer on release. Produced in United States of America, Canada. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $55M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Earned back only 57% of its budget on initial theatrical — a commercial disappointment on release.
3Released 5 years ago.
4International production across 2 countries: United States of America, Canada.
5Directed by Liesl Tommy, shot by Kramer Morgenthau. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by Kris Bowers. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Avril Beukes shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Jennifer Hudson and Forest Whitaker and Marlon Wayans carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "Find out what it means.".
10IMDB entry: tt2452150 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Kramer Morgenthau
Original score: Kris Bowers
Editing: Avril Beukes
Production design: Ina Mayhew
Costume design: Clint Ramos
Makeup / hair: Natasha Arellano
VFX supervisor: Ed Bruce
Sound: Paul Hsu
Stunt coordinator: Julius LeFlore
Runtime: 145 min · 2h 25m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $55,000,000
Box office: $31,217,372
Return: 57% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG-13
IMDB: Respect (2021)

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Liesl Tommy

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Peter McGinn2021-10-17
★ 7/10
This was a good movie, and I enjoyed it. However, I don’t expect I will ever watch it a second time. In a way, it felt like I had already seen it. And I get why: the experiences of women, even celebrity women, often mirror each other when it comes to strict fathers, as=busive first husbands, and so on. The reason we have cliches is that a lot of stuff that happens is so common it becomes a cliche. I only wish the movie had surprised me once in a while when it came to the two-dimensional portrayal of those characters. There were a few little surprises like that: the change in Aretha’s reaction to the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section backup band, a moment with her father late in the film, and a few other places. But mostly it all seemed familiar. But still, I like the movie and recommend it.
CinemaSerf2022-03-27
★ 7/10
Much has been made of the late Aretha Franklin's choice of actress to portray her in this early career retrospective - but I wonder what she might have made of the rest of the cast? Jennifer Hudson is superb when she sings, she captures much of the range and vitality of Ms Franklin. Unfortunately, as an actress she fares a little less well, and coupled with a really mediocre supporting cast the film drags quite frequently. The chronology of the story is simple enough, depicting the transition from innocent young girl - a sort of vocal trophy for her father, woken up to enthusiastically perform to the great and the good at house parties - through her disputes with the same strongly willed father (Forest Whitaker) as she hooks up with 12-years older Ted White (Marlon Wayans) and starts her bumpy road to stardom. Maybe had there been more actual opportunity for Hudson to deliver more songs, then the film would have stood out more - but there is too much emphasis on the (frankly, occasionally quite horrifying) domestic problems that rather turn this into an authentic, but still rather uninteresting tale of drink induced family woes. Certainly, these go some way to explaining the gritty determination of the woman to succeed, but they are allowed a dominance in the film that after a while become a little bit cyclical, dull even. What is clearly evident is her pride in her race, but that was also inclusive - she worked with people based on their skills and abilities regardless of their colour - including the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section - and that proves testament to a woman prepared to demonstrate a free thinking that was well ahead of it's time. Marc Maron works quite well as her long-suffering Atlantic records producer Jerry Wexler and Mary J. Blige turns in an interesting interpretation of a slightly temperamental Dinah Washington, but for the main it's all down to Hudson and she just needed to focus more on the wonderfully powerful portfolio of songs and less on the somewhat clunky drama. Stick around for the very end - there is a great "bonus track" from the lady herself.