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Jan 26, 2019stevenlavigne1 rated this title 2 out of 5 stars
In spite of being based on Holiday's autobiography, this movie was not realistic at all, and yes, Berry Gordy had his hands on everything. Sidney J. Furie was never that good a director anyway and I'm sure Gordy pushed him around. To begin with, Holiday's mother was only 13 years older and they were often mistaken for sisters. As dreamy as Billy Dee Williams is as Louis McKay, in reality he was the one who supplied her with drugs. Holiday wasn't thin either, she was rather zaftig. Ross didn't even attempt to try and capture her voice. Gordy would fire Tony Richardson and take over her next gig, Mahogany, which is campy to the point that it's almost up there with Valley of the Dolls and Mommie Dearest! If you want a good version of Holiday's life, seek out Audra McDonald's performance in the HBO film of Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill. It's far better than this.