Pros: Naomi Ackie gives a brilliant performance, covering nearly thirty years of Whitney's life, from her life as a high schooler/gospel singer, singing backup for her famous mother, to being discovered by Clive Davis (Stantley Tucci, solid), from her doomed from the start marriage to Bobby Brown (Ashton Sanders) to her tragic descent into drugs which subsequently ruin her career but more importantly, her exquisite voice. The film plods along pretty quickly and spares no expense, perfectly re-creating some iconic moments, but Ackie is worth watching.
Cons: Despite the film covering so much, you don't really understand why Whitney wants a husband and family, which is key as that decision drives her to leave her girlfriend, the solid and ethical Robyn Crawford (Nafessa Williams). Instead, she opts to marry Bobby, who openly cheats on her and is the person I blame for her downfall, though her father, John (Clarke Peters) also shoulders a large part of the blame, using her talent as his own personal vending machine.
Recommend: Probably
Grade: B
Side Notes:
-Despite Whitney's massive wealth, she's always broke because her father starts a company and passes out corporate credit cards as though they are candy. Yikes.
-Whitney's brothers are mentioned only once along with her father's second wife.
-Tamara Tunie is great as Whitney's mother who is living to this day.
-For a biopic, Whitney only has two love interests.
-Pay attention to the fan who leaves Whitney his pen. The role is so small I don't even know who portrays her sneaky drug dealer.
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