2fresh 2clean This is a good film about one of the greatest musicians in American music history. Could it have been better? Yes, but it was still good enough to keep me interested. The story line and plot were pieced together OK but the performances were great. With performers like Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, and Octavia Spencer I thought the story line and plot would be strong and very well written but I guess the main concern of this film were the performances by Chadwick Boseman. Chadwick Boseman did an excellent job portraying James Brown, from the way he talked to the way he moved on the stage, it was great. So if you want a top notched powerful film you might not necessarily get it with this one but you still won't be disappointed because the performances in this film are excellent.

Python Hyena Get On Up (2014): Dir: Tate Taylor / Cast: Chadwick Boseman, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Viola Davis, Craig Robinson: Music drama about extending one's abilities through hardship. James Brown was a musical icon symbolizing the best of soul. He is played to near perfection by Chadwick Boseman who, unlike John Lloyd Young in Jersey Boys, actually embodies the body, personality and energetic singing talent of James Brown. The screenplays starts with promise but falters with its back and forth disjointed presentation of flashbacks. We witness his harsh upbringing with neglect from both parents. We witness his arrest after breaking into a car and stealing a suit. It is here that he meets Nelsan Ellis who is performing in jail and is caught in the middle of a fight. He and Brown hit it off and together they embark on a music career. Dan Aykroyd plays Ben Bart who will become his manager and backer. One may remember the real James Brown performing in Aykroyd's masterpiece The Blues Brothers, which may indicate his interest in this project. Viola Davis plays Brown's mother who left when he was young and reappears back stage but to an unwelcome son who remembers the neglect. Craig Robinson plays one of the many band mates who questions Brown's controlling attitude thus causing tension. The film highlights classic performances where Boseman brings forth the screeching voice that has cemented the image of soul. Directed by Tate Taylor who previously made The Help. The screenplay cannot do justice to every key moment in the life of this entertainer but it does get on up with what made him great. Score: 8 / 10

ImagoDei It is not possible to watch this movie without falling in love with the superhuman -- and yet ultimately all too human -- James Brown. Chadwick Boseman's performance is nothing short of stunning, magically inhabiting Brown from the golden years of his youth on through his broke-down later years.Remarkable. I want to go out and buy "Live at the Apollo."The cast includes great performances from Nelsan Ellis, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, and Craig Robinson, though I found Dan Aykroyd a little out of tune as Brown's long-time manager Ben Bart. Interestingly, the Hollywood Reporter has an interview with Bart's son Jack, who points out some inaccuracies in the film, most importantly that the emotion-laden funeral scene is completely fictional: Brown apparently did not attend at all.Small matter. Get On Up delivers a rich and detailed picture of James Brown, a brilliant performer and sadly troubled human being.

Geeky Randy Biographical drama about the Godfather of Soul, told in a non-linear timeline of sorts, starting off with a drug-induced James Brown (played very well by Boseman, though the performance reeks of effort) toting around a gun because someone took a dump in his bathroom (an interesting choice of character development by director Taylor) and then jumps back to his sad childhood and then works its way up to his seemingly quick rise to fame. Bard (Ellis) seems to leave Brown's side for good several times, yet he always reappears without any explanation of amends. A hands down fascinating story of a fascinating man, delivered by a very talented cast and crew; but some inexplicable ways of conveying things surely hold this film back from its fullest potential.*** (out of four)