I love this movie so much

Memorable, crazy movie

Excellent, Without a doubt!!

A terrific literary drama and character piece that shows how the process of creating art can be seen differently by those doing it and those looking at it from the outside.

No hold bars. I didn't want to see just concert footage. I can see that on you tube. There wasn't much I didn't know but the little tidbits and extra revelations made me feel compassion for Whitney. She went through a lot. People failed her and she failed herself. I believe she was a very good actor by that really good at covering up her true feelings. Hopefully this family will stop being in denial about the role they played.

"Whitney" (2018 release; 120 min.) is a bio-documentary about the life and times of singer Whitney Houston. As the movie opens, we see news clips as her 1985 debut album is storming the charts and making her a mega-star. We then go back to Whitney's humble upbringing in Newark, NJ, and get to know her parents (remember that her mom Cissy Houston was a singer in her own right), and her 2 brothers. Music played a major role in Whitney's life from early on, particularly attending the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark. Her mom did not go easy on Whitney, simply wanting to prepare her for "legacy music", and when Whitney turns 18, she moves out. At this point we're 10 min. into the movie, and you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out.Couple of comments: this is the latest movie from Scottish writer-director Kevin Macdonald, who's made several other music documentaries including "Marley" (on Bob Marley) and "Being Mick" (that would be Jagger). Here he brings, with full cooperation of the Houston estate, the life and times of amazing singer Whitney Houston. Because he has full access to footage, we get to see a number of home clips previously unseen (and at times very revealing). Macdonald interviews many people who knew Whitney well or were close to her (as, say, bodyguard). Comments someone: "A lot of people around her saw her like an ATM", wow. Yes, even no-good Bobby Brown gets screen time. When asked to comment on Whitney's drug use in the last years of her life, Brown, without the least of irony or regret, responds "I'm not answering that. Drugs have nothing to do with this documentary". Nice one! In fact the last hour of the documentary detail the sad (and drug-fueled) decline of Whitney. Some of those scenes are heartbreaking, frankly. The parallels between this documentary and the "Amy" documentary a few years ago on Amy Winehouse are pretty obvious: the use of the singer's first name for the documentary's title, the questionable role of the respective dads, the respective "bad" boyfriend/husband, the cringe-inducing last tour (for Whitney in 2009), etc. etc. "Whitney" is strong documentary, no question, but in my view "Amy" was a tad better (perhaps because I like Amy's music better). The talent that Whitney had was undeniable (that voice!), even though some of those 80s songs have not aged well. But the waste of that talent makes the passing of Whitney only sadder."Whitney" premiered at this year's Cannes film festival to great buzz, and opened this weekend in 4 or 5 screens in Greater Cincinnati. The Sunday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended nicely (and primarily by African-Americans I might add). If you are a fan of Whitney Houston, or music history in general, I'd readily suggest you check this out, be it in the theater, on VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

If you are a Whitney Houston fan or even if you mainly just enjoy some of her hit songs, I highly recommend this movie. It is a very raw and real documentary that tells the successes and struggles that Whitney faced throughout her lifetime. The movie has never-seen-before footage and stories from Whitney's family members (Mother Cissy Houston, her siblings, Bobby Brown, best friend Robyn, etc), friends, and business associates and it talks about some of the deep, and dark secrets of her past all the way to the end of her life. "Whitney" had me up in excitement when I saw some of her behind-the-scenes thoughts and moments, but it also had me very sad when I saw a clear look into some of the personal demons that haunted her and were often in some of the tabloids at the time. If you want to look more into the story of an icon and to enjoy a strong drama on the theater screen, this movie is a good one to check out and it will have you talking and thinking about it even when it's over.

I was lucky enough to see this as part of preview screening at the Brixton Ritzy, bookended by incredible performances from the London Community Gospel Choir. It was emotionally exhausting, a whole range from euphoria at her stratospheric rise to distress at Whitney's destructive fall and personal tragedy. The film is an education in the music industry, media reaction and family drama. Stark and shocking in places with well chosen news footage framing her life in the context of the world she lived in at the time.