Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (2022) - Movie Review
- Red
- Feb 26, 2023
- 3 min read
Directed by Kasi Lemmons
The 2022 biopic, Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, is loaded with faithful recreations of the beloved pop-star's best known performances and features a small amount of drama to fill the time in between.
The musical drama film goes through Whitney Houston's extraordinary career, whizzing through the years from her big break until her untimely passing. We witness a small amount of her life behind-the-scenes, and also encounter many of her associates. However, a large portion of the film is simply the lead actress lip-syncing to Whitney's hits on stage, which really slows down the pace.
British actress Naomi Ackie bravely takes on the huge endeavour of playing the titular role of Houston, and succeeds very well. Although she doesn't look a great deal like the pop-star, she fully encapsulates the singer's essence. Her accent and mannerisms were spot-on, making me believe I was watching Houston herself.
Standouts from the supporting cast include Clarke Peters as Whitney's father John Houston, Ashton Sanders as the eccentric Bobby Brown and the always incredible Stanley Tucci as record producer Clive Davis. Tucci portrays Davis as a true friend to Whitney, a much needed figure in the film and in her life. Clive acted as producer for the movie, alongside some of the late icon's other confidantes.
I enjoyed the film a lot when it was a drama, showing us who Whitney Houston really was and showing her relationships with others. However, in between these moments are drawn-out recreations of Whitney's performances which really slowed the pace down for me. The movie's 146 minute runtime feels too long; the performances could've been cut down a lot. The movie ends with a nearly 9 minute long beat-for-beat recreation of Whitney's performance at the 1994 American Music Awards which ends up feeling rather boring compared to the rest of the film. The fairly slow tempo of the medley and the constant switching between shots of Naomi Ackie and reactions from the audience becomes repetitive very quickly. I would've preferred a more upbeat, engaging performance, or for the sequence to have been shortened. It's a positive ending even so, causing the audience to finish the movie feeling amazed, wanting to listen to Whitney's greatest hits all over again.
The film glides through the singer's 30 year long career quickly, giving each key moment in her career a small amount of time before moving on to the next sequence. I felt as though we didn't get to know Houston that well and so the film might have benefited from having more focus. We didn't learn much about Whitney, the person, other than what could be found on her Wikipedia page or in an article about her, nor did we see much of her effect on music and on the world.
The subtle use of VFX fits well, and some shots are memorable, although the direction and cinematography doesn't stand out massively compared to other musical biopics. Writer Anthony McCarten did a decent job with the dialogue and story, making sure to honour the late pop-star, addressing her flaws without lingering on them for too long.
I enjoyed the way the costumes and the production design take the viewer through the decades but I feel as though title cards stating the year each event took place would've been a nice addition.
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody is an entertaining film featuring fantastic music and a portrayal of the iconic pop-star that is both accurate and fair. Although the performance recreations are drawn-out at times and the film is bloated, it is nonetheless an enjoyable watch and a good introduction to Houston's career.
Watch Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody in theatres now.
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