EXTRA, EXTRA FABULOUS
Added 4/3/2009
THIS IS THE MOVIE TO OWN. IT HAS ALL THE EMOTIONS IT MAKE YOU LAUGH, CRY AND ANGRY. VERY GOOD STORY LINE. VERY VERY ENTERTAINING.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Good performances on the part of Lonette McGee... and even Phillip Michael Thomas... A back in the day kinda film... great!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Sister and the Sisters **SPARKLE** and the movie Shines!
Added 1/6/2009
I love the movie SPARKLE and I'm so glad I finally bought the DVD.
Named as the precursor and inspiration to the Broadway musical Dreamgirls (and eventually movie Dreamgirls (Two-Disc Showstopper Edition)), the film is about a group of friends--three of them sisters--and the different paths their lives take as they deal with life in the Harlem ghetto in the late 50s and 60s.
Don't let the cutesy title fool you; SPARKLE is a dark drama about pain and joy, and the nearly impossible task of trying to lift one's life out of poverty. There are some fantastic musical numbers and the dresses are fab, but this is far from the glamorous "Dreamgirls."
Fantastic songs and score by Curtis Mayfield punctuate the drama on screen and the dark lighting creates a stifling atmosphere that puts the viewer smack dab in the middle of poverty...where the only light shines is on the performer up on the stage.
The transfer to DVD is gorgeous! It's about time this cult favorite was released on DVD.
It also includes the trailer narrated by Casey Kasem and includes a separate CD from the Aretha Franklin album Sparkle: Music From The Warner Bros. Motion Picture..
The bonus CD contains 5 out of the 8 songs that were on the album/CD. Songs not on the bonus are:
JUMP
I GET HIGH
ROCK WITH ME
One note about the soundtrack: I really wish they would add the original vocals from the movie (done by Irene Cara, Lonette Mckee and Dawn Smith) to the soundtrack. Don't get me wrong, I love Aretha but the arrangements are so different on some songs that I don't like it.
And beside, Cara and Mckee sound wonderful, particularly Cara's solo on "Precious Lord Take My Hand." Oh well, I guess we can't have it all!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Nothing To Sing Home About
Added 12/16/2008
Let's keep it real here: "Sparkle" became more boring after Sister died. Sister (Lonette McKee) was the most beautiful and exciting sister. Too bad her life was cut short- rather quickly. If the movie was focused solely on her and contained a better script, I'm sure the movie would've been more interesting and profound. I found Sparkle (Irene Cara) to be as bland as stale wheat bread. I can't believe someone as boring as her ended up being the star of the movie. I just got tired of the goody-two shoes personality. Even hooking up with Stix (Phillip Michael Thomas) didn't add any spice to her. I also didn't understand why the middle sister Doleres (Dwan Smith) was the homeliest of the bunch. Irene Cara is a good singer, but she's not much of a soul singer. Lonette McKee wasn't much of a singer in those days, although I really liked her version of "Giving Up." Over all, the movie was alright, it just wasn't that great. Since Hollywood likes do remakes of movies that came out eons ago, a really great idea would be to re-write the entire script to Sparkle and change some things around.
2 out of 2 people found this helpful.
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SUCH A GREAT MOVIE!!!
Added 10/20/2008
I thought this was going to be one of those boring movies where the characters would break out in a song for no reason at all, but this was beyond perfect. If you haven't seen it, you're seriously missing out on one of the greatest movies done.
0 out of 1 people found this helpful.
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EXTRA, EXTRA FABULOUS
Added 4/3/2009
THIS IS THE MOVIE TO OWN. IT HAS ALL THE EMOTIONS IT MAKE YOU LAUGH, CRY AND ANGRY. VERY GOOD STORY LINE. VERY VERY ENTERTAINING.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Good performances on the part of Lonette McGee... and even Phillip Michael Thomas... A back in the day kinda film... great!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
|
Sister and the Sisters **SPARKLE** and the movie Shines!
Added 1/6/2009
I love the movie SPARKLE and I'm so glad I finally bought the DVD.
Named as the precursor and inspiration to the Broadway musical Dreamgirls (and eventually movie Dreamgirls (Two-Disc Showstopper Edition)), the film is about a group of friends--three of them sisters--and the different paths their lives take as they deal with life in the Harlem ghetto in the late 50s and 60s.
Don't let the cutesy title fool you; SPARKLE is a dark drama about pain and joy, and the nearly impossible task of trying to lift one's life out of poverty. There are some fantastic musical numbers and the dresses are fab, but this is far from the glamorous "Dreamgirls."
Fantastic songs and score by Curtis Mayfield punctuate the drama on screen and the dark lighting creates a stifling atmosphere that puts the viewer smack dab in the middle of poverty...where the only light shines is on the performer up on the stage.
The transfer to DVD is gorgeous! It's about time this cult favorite was released on DVD.
It also includes the trailer narrated by Casey Kasem and includes a separate CD from the Aretha Franklin album Sparkle: Music From The Warner Bros. Motion Picture..
The bonus CD contains 5 out of the 8 songs that were on the album/CD. Songs not on the bonus are:
JUMP
I GET HIGH
ROCK WITH ME
One note about the soundtrack: I really wish they would add the original vocals from the movie (done by Irene Cara, Lonette Mckee and Dawn Smith) to the soundtrack. Don't get me wrong, I love Aretha but the arrangements are so different on some songs that I don't like it.
And beside, Cara and Mckee sound wonderful, particularly Cara's solo on "Precious Lord Take My Hand." Oh well, I guess we can't have it all!
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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