Ray Movie
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| Rating: |
 
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| Run Time: | 152 min |
| MPAA Rating: | PG13 |
| Released: | 2004 |
| Directors: |
Taylor Hackford |
| Genre/Type: |
Drama Musical Drama Biopic [feature] |
| Producers: |
Karen Baldwin Howard Baldwin Stuart Benjamin Taylor Hackford |
Plot Synopsis by Tracie Cooper
Directed by Taylor Hackford, this biopic profiles the life of legendary musician Ray Charles. Despite humble beginnings and the loss of his eyesight due to glaucoma at the age of six, Charles, depicted by Jamie Foxx, would nonetheless become an icon in both the music industry and the civil rights era. While the film delves into his problems with drugs and women, the bulk of the story details his career; among the highlights of that career are 12 Grammy awards and 11 R&B chart-toppers, such as "Unchain My Heart," "Hit the Road, Jack," "Georgia," "Doin' the Mess Around," and "Hallelujah I Just Love Her So." Also among the cast are Larenz Tate as Quincy Jones, as well as Regina King, Kerry Washington, and Clifton Powell. Charles' son, Ray Charles Jr. helped produce the film.
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Cast
| Actors | Character | Born |
| Jamie Foxx | Ray Charles | Dec 13, 1967 in Terrell, TX |
| Kerry Washington | Della Charles | Jan 5, 1977 in Bronx, NY |
| Regina King | Margie Hendrix | Jan 15, 1971 in Los Angeles, CA |
| Clifton Powell | Jeff Brown | |
| Aunjanue Ellis | Mary Ann Fisher | |
| Harry J. Lennix | Joe Adams | Nov 16, 1965 in Chicago, IL |
| Terrence Howard | Gossie McKee | Mar 11, 1969 in Chicago, IL |
| Larenz Tate | Quincy Jones | Sep 8, 1975 |
| Bokeem Woodbine | Fathead Newman | |
| Sharen Warren | Aretha Robinson | |
| Curtis Armstrong | Ahmet Ertegun | Nov 27, 1953 in Detroit, MI |
| Richard Schiff | Jerry Wexler | May 27, 1955 in Bethesda, MD |
| C.J. Sanders | Young Ray | |
| Wendell Pierce | Wilbur Brassfield | |
| Chris Thomas King | Lowell Fulsom | |
| David Krumholtz | Milt Shaw | May 15, 1978 in New York, NY |
Back to the topReview
Review by Perry Seibert
Taylor Hackford's Ray is at heart little more than a run-of-the mill biopic that hits all the familiar story points for that genre. What keeps this film from becoming totally pedestrian is the fierce, commanding performance of Jamie Foxx. This is not an impersonation of Ray Charles, nor is it a vain attempt to bask in the glow of Charles the celebrity. Foxx finds difficult emotional places to go to, and Ray Charles is often more interesting than the one Hackford seems to want to tell the audience about. One can believe that these amazing songs are coming from this man, and that may be the biggest compliment one can pay to the performance. That point also leads to the other aspect of the film that keeps it afloat: the superb music. The film was made with Charles' approval, and he allowed the filmmakers to use his original recordings. Had this been a play, a one-man show with the same music, it would make for a fascinating and memorable evening. As he always does, Hackford fills his film with convention after convention, and in doing so, undercuts the real and complicated issues apparent both in Foxx and in the music.
