It’s Nina Simone’s turn at a musical biopic, detailing the second half of her career, in “Nina”. She was one of the century’s most extraordinary talents, a 15-time Grammy nominee and Grammy Hall of Fame Recipient. Her mesmerizing songs and passionate politics combined to make her the unforgettable Nina Simone (Zoe Saldana). But fame and fortune came with a price, and her later years were riddled with depression, alcohol abuse and isolation from the outside world. After abandoning her fans in America, Nina seeked shelter in Paris, where she lived a life of regrets. Nina rediscovers the true meaning of her life and work that took courage, strength and one true friend: Clifton Henderson (David Oyelowo), the man who started out as her assistant and eventually became her loyal manager. With Clifton’s encouragement, the “high priestess of soul” began a courageous journey back to her music and, eventually, herself. “Nina” is written and directed by Cynthia Mort, and is rated R for adult language, minor drug use, and heavy alcoholic drinking.
To anyone who has read anything in the press about this film, the movie has taken a brash beating from critics alike for its questionable casting of Zoe Saldana as the title character. Rotten Tomatoes has it currently at 3%, IMDB gave it a 5.2/10, and Fandango has it at 28%. All of this had me curious as to the kind of bomb that I was getting myself into. Upon completion, I was scratching my head because I actually thought the film was decent. I might be the only one who stands up for this movie, but I feel like a lot of its criticism is unfairly based off of Saldana wearing blackface to acheive the look of her role. I will get to that later, but “Nina” is certainly more of a compelling watch than Hank Williams biopic “I Saw the Light”. The movie definitely has its problems, mostly in a screenplay that rushes through a majority of Nina’s finest moments. The film clocks in at a meager 90 minutes, so Mort never gets to capitalize on the things that made Nina such a trail blazer for African American rights during the 70s. Most of this backstory is reduced to brief editing sequences that pause the current story in its tracks during multiple times in the film. It doesn’t make for the smoothest of transitions, and I personally would’ve liked to see more of the vital history of Simone, as it informs us of her borderline personality disorder when she gets older. The movie being too quick, greatly hinders it creatively from telling the WHOLE story, even if what we get isn’t half bad.
What the script does pay great tribute to is the incorporation of Nina’s endless song catalogue over the course of the story. Music plays a big part (obviously) in this telling, and Mort does a great job of distinguishing the two Nina’s that the world got; between on-stage and off. Simone transfixes the audience at her shows, as well as the audiences watching this movie simultaneously. Zoe lended her own vocal work to the movie’s five different musical performances, and her vocal range, while not as tonely gifted as Nina, does pay great tribute to the late Simone. You feel the real sorrow and pain in each one of her songs, and those are two emotions that greatly influence the film’s foreground.
Lets talk about the performances, as that’s the main critique for critics alike. Saldana is a questionable choice for everyone, if only for her shade of skin color that doesn’t quite match Simone’s. What the movie does wisely is use makeup and prosthetics to acheive the look of an aged Nina, and to anyone who knows about Nina, the look is scary perfect. On the subject of blackface, I can say that yes it is politically incorrect and very insensitive to many of Nina’s fans and family. It probably wasn’t the best choice creatively, but at least the look ends in success with Saldana looking unrecognizable as her singer counterpart. Until the credits, I forgot that Zoe was even in this movie, and it’s a transformation on the very top of the list in this early 2016. As for her performance, Saldana captivates Nina’s dual personas with great loneliness. This is a woman all by herself, and when she meets her new assistant, it’s the most open that she has been in years. The chemistry between Saldana and Oyelowo is very heartfelt, and capsulates the very definition of best friend. It’s refreshing to see two people so close in a movie (especially a biopic), and they aren’t involved romantically. Oyelowo’s Clifton certainly knows everything about his client, but it’s his love for her as a person and her mastering of her craft that keeps Clifton coming back. Oyelowo continues to impress with a performance subtely that showcases why he’s Mr dependable for a vast array of roles over the last two years. Another big surprise is a brief cameo from Mike Epps as Richard Pryor. This is Epps first serious role, and I greatly took a liking to his turn as the world’s most famous comedian of all time. If a modern-day Pryor film was to take place, I would be curious to see two hours of Epps best.
“Nina” is the latest in an oversaturated genre of musical biopics, but it’s the most compelling one i’ve seen in quite some time. On top of two solid performances that are visually and physically on-par for the people they tribute, the movie doesn’t take the easy way out when it comes to the negatives of stardom and celebrity. Cynthia Mort commands a hypnotizing performance from Saldana, and this is one critic who is telling you NOT to believe the negative hype with her latest film.
6/10