I was so excited to hear that HBO would be making a movie about the life of Bessie Smith! I love the 1920's, especially the Harlem Renaissance! I've always been fascinated by the level of self expression and exploration African-American artists had during this time period. Bessie Smith is an excellent example of this in the way she was able to become a great musical success, while also not allowing others to box her into a box.
The story focuses on Bessie Smith's (Queen Latifah) rise to fame, as well as her life immediately after the peak of her stardom. There are some brief flashbacks to her childhood, focusing on the loss of her mother at a young age, but the film begins with an adult Smith performing as an up and coming blues singer. Throughout the film you see Smith encounter and face various obstacles, such as the paper bag test (a test requiring someone's skin to be as light as a paper bag or lighter) and even the KKK. The business side of being an African-American artist at the time is also depicted. There's a scene where Smith witnesses Ma Rainey (Mo'Nique) and Pa Rainey (Charles S. Dutton) ensure the venue owner pays them what is rightfully owed to them. You also see Smith's transition into becoming a recording artist, including her audition and rejection at Black Swan Records (the first Black-owned record label, W.E.B. DuBois was a board member) and her signing to Columbia Records. There's also the scene where Bessie meets Langston Hughes (Jeremie Harris) at a Carl Van Vechten (Oliver Platt) party with mostly upper-class White guests. There is mention of Van Vechten's book, Nigger Heaven, and when Van Vechten asks Smith to perform, Hughes warns her that this is not her typical crowd. But Smith stays true to herself in her performance in spite of the initial lackluster response of the crowd. The scene provides a brief glimpse of White voyeurism during the Harlem Renaissance.
The film explores various facets of Smith's life outside of being a performer. We see the beginning of her relationship with Ma Rainey, and watch it go from Ma Rainey taking Smith under her wings to a slight rivalry, as Smith began to find her voice and stage presence, and most importantly into their friendship. There's exploration of her close relationship with her brother, Clarence (Tory Kittles), who is a fellow performer, and her strained relationship with her sister, Viola (Khandi Alexander aka Mama Pope), who raised Smith and her siblings after their parents died. The film also follows her marriage to Jack Gee (Michael Kenneth Williams aka Omar), which includes infidelity on both sides (including Jack Gee's affair with Gertrude Saunder, played by Chantelle Rose, which led to the couple's split after Smith discovers he was using her money to produce a show for Saunder). Smith's bisexuality is portrayed in the film through her relationship with the character Lucille (Tika Sumpter). The film also depicts Smith's affair with Richard Morgan (Mike Epps) during her marriage, and staying true to Smith's life story, the film ends with Smith and Richard being together. Smith's binge drinking, and preference for corn liquor, is also seen throughout the film.
Overall, I think the film was very well done! It was a multi-faceted depiction of the peak of Smith's life and the surrounding years before and after. Queen Latifah, who had her first onscreen nude scene for the film, truly became Smith. Not once did I see Latifah. I was enthralled in watching Smith's life unfold throughout the film. The film managed to pull together so many parts of what made Smith such an amazing woman, the good and the bad. I will always be a champion of films that bring great African-American men and women of the past to the forefront of our recent memory!