Sparkle

This is from my first movie blog
(Triple Threat Review Crew), which 
I deleted, but the post were still 
good! So here you are!

(8/19/2012)

This movie showed High Promise. It was next Dream Girls! American Idol Star and all! Sparkle Was Fabulous by everything the previews told us, and how could we deny it with big names like Cee-Lo Green, Whitney Houston, Mike Epps, and of course Jordin Sparks!

Sadly, it was not as fabulous as I thought. 

Cee-Lo Green is NOT a main character, but rather a short cameo. He was entertaining for the short time he was on screen and I truly wish I could have seen more of him! 

Then there was Whitney Houston, as Emma, it a plainly obvious she was high/on drugs throughout the movie. Sometimes she was a strong and beautiful woman and other times it did not matter how much make up you put on her, she looked awful! Her solo was rather confusing, one minute you're one place and the next she's wearing a purple cape singing a song that seems to go on forever. Then you realize she's at church... okay... The lyrics say, 'don't be discourage, sing for jesus, be happy, be free'... And yet, when Sparkle comes home and tells her she made it BIG! Houston ignores her completely, which is discouraging, sad, and once again she is trying to trap her daughter into a life Sparkle does not want... So what was the point of the song??

Mike Epps(Satin) was, as always, a charismatic presence within the movie. Entertaining and villainous, he raise the bar in both his acting career and this movie's status. Omari Hardwick(Levi) another strong male figure in the movie, if only for a few minutes. His quick wit at Epps debut of comedy with a solely black crowd was very entertaining and enjoyable! Last of the main male figures is Derek Luke as Stix. Luke, while sweet at times, also used Sparkle, and then got a little lost in the mix. He has a great smile!

All three sisters got their BIG Break in this film! It was obvious the dynamic Tika Sumpters(Dolores) and the sensual Carmen Ejodo(Sister) had more acting experience. They were large personalities in perfect roles for each of them.

Jordin Sparks' break out role, as Sparkle, in this major motion picture was just a little bigger than she was. It's obvious she is a novice to acting, but as a novice she did wonderfully!! Unfortunately, most believed this movie would excel her acting career as Jennifer Hudson in Dreamgirls did, but it won't. At least not as much...

I think the most disappointing part of the movie was the lack of staying in the times. The music was back and forth from the 60s/70s to now. The long ending were not common back then as they are not and was very distracting... Looking at the original's (Sparkle-1976) soundtrack compared to the current one, I wish they used more of the original music. Also the timeline after Stix left was confusing... Apparently, she moves out, but whether she's in Cali or Detroit, we don't know and eight years pass in a blink of an eye.

I don't know... In the end it was... just a movie, with music. Nothing all that special...

4 out of 10 stars