Eddie Murphy Movie:

		List Price: $19.99		Label: DreamWorks Salesrank: 13986 Released: May 1, 2007
		Our Price: $2.31
		Used Price: $1.10
		MPAA Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
Director Bill Condon brings Tom Eyen's Tony award-winning Broadway musical to the big screen in a tale of dreams stardom and the high cost of success in the cutthroat recording industry. The time is the 1960s and singers Effie (Jennifer Hudson) Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose) and Deena (Beyonc Knowles) are about to find out just what it's like to have their wildest dreams come true. Discovered at a local talent show by ambitious manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx) the trio known as "the Dreamettes" is soon offered the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity of opening for popular singer James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). Subsequently molded into an unstoppable hit machine by Taylor and propelled into the spotlight as "the Dreams" the girls quickly find their bid for the big time taking priority over personal friendship as Taylor edges out the ultra-talented Effie so that the more beautiful Deena can become the face of the group. Now as the crossover act continues to dominate the airwaves the small-town girls with big-city dreams slowly begin to realize that the true cost of fame may be higher than any of them ever anticipated.System Requirements:Running Time: 130 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: DRAMA Rating: PG - 13 UPC: 097361235448 Manufacturer No: 123544

Description of Dreamgirls (Full Screen Edition):
The spirit of Motown runs through the long-awaited film adaption of the Broadway musical Dreamgirls, which centers around a young female singing trio who burst upon the music scene in the '60s, complete with bouffant hairdos, glitzy gowns, and a soul sound new to the white-bread American music charts. Sound familiar? You aren't the first one to draw comparisons to the meteoric rise of the Supremes, and despite any protests to the contrary, this is most definitely a thinly veiled reinterpretation of that success story. The Dreamettes--statuesque Deena (Beyonce Knowles), daffy Lorell (Anika Noni Rose) and brassy Effie (Jennifer Hudson)--are a girl group making the talent-show rounds when they're discovered by car salesman and aspiring music manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie Foxx). Sensing greatness (as well as a new marketing opportunity) Curtis signs the Dreamettes as backup singers for R&B star James "Thunder" Early (Eddie Murphy). But when Early's mercurial ways and singing style don't mesh with primarily white audiences, Curtis moves the newly-renamed Dreams to center stage--with Deena as lead singer in place of Effie. And that's not the only arena in which Effie is replaced, as Curtis abandons their love affair for a relationship with star-in-the-making Deena.

Besides the Supremes comparison, one can't talk about Dreamgirls now without revisiting its notorious Oscar snub; though it received eight nominations, the most for any film from 2006, it was shut out of the Best Picture and Director races entirely. Was the oversight justified? While Dreamgirls is certainly a handsomely mounted, lovingly executed and often vibrant film adaptation, it inspires more respect than passion, only getting under your skin during the musical numbers, which become more sporadic as the film goes on. Writer-director Bill Condon is definitely focused on recreating the Motown milieu (down to uncanny photographs of Knowles in full Diana Ross mode), he often forgets to flesh out his characters, who even on the Broadway stage were underwritten and relied on powerhouse performances to sell them to audiences. (Stage fans will also note that numerous songs are either truncated or dropped entirely from the film.) Condon has assembled a game cast, as Knowles does a canny riff on the essence of Diana Ross' glamour (as opposed to an all-out impersonation) and Rose makes a peripheral character surprisingly vibrant; only Foxx, who never gets to pour on the charisma, is miscast. Still, there are two things even the most cranky viewers will warm to in Dreamgirls: the performances of veteran Eddie Murphy and newcomer Jennifer Hudson. Murphy is all sly charm and dazzling energy as the devilish Early, who's part James Brown, part Little Richard, and all showman. And Hudson, an American Idol contestant who didn't even make the top three, makes an impressive debut as the larger-than-life Effie, whose voice matches her passions and stubbornness. Though she sometimes may seem too young for the role, Hudson nails the movie's signature song, "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," with a breathtaking power that must be seen and heard to believe. And for those five minutes, if not more, you will be in Dreamgirls' thrall. --Mark Englehart

Beyond Dreamgirls

Other Musicals on DVD

More Motown on DVD

The Soundtrack

Dreamgirls (Full Screen Edition) Reviews:
dreamgirls
2008-10-06 - The story is ordinary in this category, not much surprise. But the songs are great. Very easy listening and the sound effect is good! Never imagine I like this kind of film so much.

Awesome music
2008-10-03 - This musical has some of the most incredible music I have heard in a long time. Jennifer Hudson's performance is out of this world. I watch or listen to this DVD frequently because of the music. I recommend it to anyone who enjoys this type of film.

Dreamgirls
2008-09-27 - This movie is my first experience with "Dreamgirls" Magic, and that does not bother me in the least as I was amazed by the spirit and style of this incredible little musical. Jennifer Hudson and Eddie Murphey are by far the best two actors, but none of the talent is worth lament. Like all good musicals, the songs are what truly keeps this going and they are amazing. However, this does have a hell of a good story and plenty of rousing dance sequences. It's thrown together fairly randomly, but it works in its own artsy way. All in all, I love it.

DREAMGIRLS
2008-08-29 - LOVE THIS SHOW. GREAT DVD AT A FRACTION OF THE COST. I ALSO ORDERED THE SOUNDTRACK FROM AMAZON AT A FRACTION OF THE COST.

Dreamgirls... Everything they said it would be
2008-08-14 - Somewhere out there, Jennifer Holliday is shaking her head and sighing. Jennifer was nearly 25 years ahead of her time when she starred in the Broadway version of "Dreamgirls" as Effie. Today, she's seen the show come to film and make another Jennifer, Jennifer Hudson, a star. Timing is everything. Hudson was poised like no other entertainer, to pick up the strings and threads left by the amazing Aretha Franklin as a queen of the soul sound.

Amazing that she is propelled into the role by a movie, and not by a record. "Dreamgirls" is loosely based on actual Motown events, on promoter/producer Berry Gordy (Curtis Taylor, played by Jamie Foxx),an amalgam of a black male singer that is a combination of James Brown-Marvin Gay (James "Thunder" Early, played by Eddie Murphy) and a trio of female singers sketched after the Supremes. Like the Supremes, the trio starts with three girls who have been singing together forever (Effie, played by Hudson, Deena, played by Beyonce, and Lorrell, played by Anika Noni Rose) and who finally break into the Motown scene as backup singers. Involved in the success of the group is Effie's brother, who writes their songs (C.C. White, played by Keith Robinson).

The movie takes the players through love and hardship, from gaining respect to being a multi-platinum success, with the downside issues that come with fame. Characters betray each other, love each other, find redemption.

The music is spectacular, so much that I purchased the soundtrack. The world talks about Hudson's incredible solo of "And I Am Telling You (I'm Not Going)." I equally enjoyed her solo takes on "I Am Changing" and "One Night Only". She's incomparable. The group performance (with Eddie Murphy as lead) of the anti-war anthem, "Patience", was a highlight for me. And there is a sweet, sweet moment at the memorial service for Thunder, when Loretta Devine (from the Broadway production and the TV show Boston Public) sings "I Miss You, Old Friend".


The costumes are equally well done, and the screenplay works hard to make the production flow (although it doesn't succeed nearly as well as "Chicago" did). It takes Dreamgirls from the tough times of the black music circuit in the 60's, to actual footage of the race riots and Martin Luther King, to the glitz of Miami and the disco scene, and the ennui that was Hollywood in those days. There are some "down" spots, an example of which is Thunder's drug problem...the script has focused on his womanizing, and the addiction issue comes out of nowhere.


Completely entertaining, musically outstanding, "Dreamgirls" is a great addition to your collection of DVD musicals.