Respect

"This biography never fully sparks to life..."

"A film beset by the usual biopic tropes and shortcuts..."

"Jennifer Hudson tries her best with a disappointingly rote retread through cliches of a well-worn genre..."

"Tommy’s flat direction... lends a generic affectlessness to practically every scene in which Hudson... isn’t singing her heart out."

"A solid, sanitised, unfailingly polite portrait."

"Respect finds a way to bring together woman and artist in a way that does justice to both."

"It's a damn good performance and this is a damn entertaining movie."

"An enjoyable ode to Aretha Franklin, biopic cliches and all..."

"(Respect) comes up short in what should be the most crucial ingredient - soul."

"A movie not only rigid with cliche but bloated beyond reason."

"Respect is never better - Hudson is never better - than when the movie sets aside the bullet points to delve into the talent."

"Respect has the subtle nuance, grace, and vulnerability that benefits greatly from a female vantage point."

"What it lacks in thematic detail is almost entirely overridden by how good the lead actress is at its centre."

"Liesl Tommy extracts the proper emotion from every scene, and the music is like truffles on top of a fantastic meal."

"A perfectly serviceable biopic with good performances... but one that isn't nearly as transcendent as its subject deserves."

"After more than two hours of the new messy Aretha Franklin biopic Respect, it’s not clear what it means, wasting a lot of superb screen talent in the slapdash process."

"Solid performances can’t save a film so shamelessly invested in stale biopic cliches..."

"(A) threadbare hodgepodge of bad impressions, gratuitous filmmaking, and even worse depictions of mental health..."

"The ageless music, of course, is the galvanising force, but it’s the personal struggle behind it that makes the story so affecting."

"Solid if somewhat conventional..."

"Liesl Tommy’s sensitive direction brings out the key moments in subtle ways..."