What's Love Got To Do With It: CR #31

This week's film is about the true story of a famous singer and her struggles with her abusive marriage. A film that I've been very excited to see, even though I admittedly don't know much about the person the film is about. This is...

PLOT
This film follows famous singer Tina Turner on her rise to fame, her abusive relationship with her husband Ike Turner, and the courage it took to leave him and move on.



PROS
Everyone in this film gives an amazing performance. The stand-out is Laurence Fishburne as Ike Turner. He's truly terrifying in this role and makes a serious impact.

The concert scenes are a lot of fun and well choreographed. They also help to create an interesting parallel where her on-stage life seems happier than the living hell she experiences off stage, which I'm sure was how it felt in real life.

The scenes where Ike is beating Tina are genuinely scary. While at first I thought they were overly exaggerated, it turns out that the film isn't too far off. This only makes those scenes even more effective and hard to watch.



CONS
Ike Turner seems like a very one-dimensional character in the film. While Fishburne does help to add some depth with his performance, overall he's portrayed as a monstrous brute and nothing more.

There are a few scenes that seem too "Hollywood". While I understand stretching the truth a bit, some scenes seem too far-fetched. Not a huge problem, but it did bother me a bit.


CONCLUSION
This is a great movie that easily gets you involved in the story, whether or not you know who Tina Turner is. I loved it, and while it's not perfect, it's certainty worth a look.


RATING
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