Get on Up

BRYCE **
Coming on the heels of the wildly successful racial drama "The Help," director Tate Taylor tackles the life of James Brown, one of the most influential figures in American music history, with his latest film "Get on Up."  Chadwick Boseman is electrifying in the lead role and brings the same excitement to the screen that Mr. Brown did to the stage.  He has the look, the mannerisms and especially the dance moves of the Godfather of Soul down to a T.  The film itself on the other hand is a different story.  The filmmakers have attempted to tell the story out of order and switch back and forth between Boseman speaking to the audience and ignoring them altogether in an attempt to boost the artistic prowess of what is otherwise a very standard biopic script.  Ironically, the film would have almost certainly been more effective if they had just played it straight with the narrative.  There a few great performances in the film and some thrilling musical numbers, but the confusing and overly drawn-out storytelling spoils all the fun.

CHASE **

BANGERANG SCORE: **