Musical Film 'The Color Purple' Dances from Trauma to Triumph

Cast members, Director Blitz Bazawule and Alicia Keys attend a premiere for the film "The Color Purple" in Los Angeles, California, US, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
Cast members, Director Blitz Bazawule and Alicia Keys attend a premiere for the film "The Color Purple" in Los Angeles, California, US, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
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Musical Film 'The Color Purple' Dances from Trauma to Triumph

Cast members, Director Blitz Bazawule and Alicia Keys attend a premiere for the film "The Color Purple" in Los Angeles, California, US, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo
Cast members, Director Blitz Bazawule and Alicia Keys attend a premiere for the film "The Color Purple" in Los Angeles, California, US, December 6, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni/File Photo

Following the fame of previous versions, Ghanaian filmmaker Blitz Bazawule was not sure the 2023 musical film adaptation of “The Color Purple” was a movie that he could make.
“It’s been a brilliant Pulitzer Prize winning book by Alice Walker, it’s been a multi-nominated film by Steven Spielberg, and of course, a Tony award-winning Broadway play,” he said.
“So, when you step into something like that, it’s very clear the bar’s incredibly high,” he added.
Despite his early concerns, after re-reading Walker’s novel, Bazawule was confident he could add something new to the story.
Following in Spielberg's footsteps, who directed the 1985 film, Bazawule's iteration of “The Color Purple” is the first that is based on the Broadway show, Reuters said.
Spielberg, Oprah Winfrey, who starred in the original film as Sofia, and Quincy Jones, returned to serve as producers with a screenplay by Marcus Gardley.
The first film starred Whoopi Goldberg, who won a Golden Globe for her performance as Celie. This time around, the film stars TV show American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino, who was also Celie in the Broadway musical adaptation of the book.
The Grammy-winning music artist received her first Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress on Dec. 11.
Starring as Celie, Fantasia is joined by Phylicia Pearl Mpasi as young Celie, Taraji P. Henson as Shug Avery, Danielle Brooks as Sofia, “Rustin” actor Colman Domingo as Albert “Mister” Johnson and Corey Hawkins as Harpo Johnson.
The period-drama musical dances into US theaters on Dec. 25.
"The Color Purple" follows the story of two Black American teenage sisters, Celie and Nettie, in the American South during the early 1900s.
Celie embarks on a journey to find her freedom after she and Nettie are separated by the men in their lives and must overcome years of abuse.
Domingo and many of his castmates find that the stories of Black women and their families navigating and overcoming complex dynamics are at the core of the film.
"I think we’re dealing with a family here. That’s actually what 'The Color Purple' is about. It’s about these women making changes through adversity and the men who inflict a lot of harm," Domingo said.
Echoing his thoughts on the Warner Bros. movie, Henson said that in addition to unpacking trauma, it is important for the film to explore Black joy.
“Our power lies in our joy. That's why it's imperative that we tap into it, and that's innately what we do,” she added.
With that said, Bazawule does not want audiences to think that the movie is only applicable to the Black community.
“Yes, her journey was specific to the American South in the early 1900s but there are several Celies around us. Sometimes we ourselves are Celies,” he said.



Tom Cruise Pays Tribute to Val Kilmer

Tom Cruise led a moment of silence in honor of Val Kilmer at CinemaCon, the official convention of theater owners in the United States. Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Tom Cruise led a moment of silence in honor of Val Kilmer at CinemaCon, the official convention of theater owners in the United States. Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
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Tom Cruise Pays Tribute to Val Kilmer

Tom Cruise led a moment of silence in honor of Val Kilmer at CinemaCon, the official convention of theater owners in the United States. Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Tom Cruise led a moment of silence in honor of Val Kilmer at CinemaCon, the official convention of theater owners in the United States. Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP

Tom Cruise paid tribute to late "Top Gun" co-star Val Kilmer on Thursday, leading movie theater owners in a moment's silence at the CinemaCon event before unveiling new footage from his latest "Mission: Impossible" movie.

"I'd like to honor a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer," said Cruise, at the start of his hotly anticipated appearance at the annual industry summit in Las Vegas.

"I really can't tell you how much I admired his work, how much I thought of him as a human being, and how grateful and honored I was when he joined 'Top Gun' and then came back for 'Top Gun: Maverick," said Cruise.

Kilmer, one of the biggest Hollywood actors of the 1990s, who shot to fame playing Iceman in the original 1986 "Top Gun", died aged 65, his family announced this week.

The cause of death was pneumonia. Kilmer had battled throat cancer after being diagnosed in 2014, and made his final appearance in the "Top Gun" 2022 sequel "Maverick," physically diminished and with a raspy voice.

Cruise on Thursday led the audience at Caesars Palace casino in a lengthy silence, asking attendees to "take a moment and just think about all the wonderful times that we had" watching Kilmer on the big screen.

"I wish you well on your next journey," said Cruise, to Kilmer.

He added to the attendees: "Thank you all for doing that. I know he appreciates it."

"Top Gun" was Kilmer's breakout role. Starring opposite Cruise, he played the cocky, square-jawed and mostly silent fighter pilot in training Tom "Iceman" Kazansky.

When he reprised his role as "Iceman" in the long-awaited sequel "Top Gun: Maverick," Kilmer's real-life health issues were written into the character.

Cruise on Thursday also introduced a new trailer for "Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning," out May 23.

Footage shows Cruise's ageless hero Ethan Hunt clinging to the wheels of a small biplane as it soars down a narrow canyon and barrel rolls through the skies.

The trailer contained extensive flashbacks to famous scenes from earlier in the eight-film blockbuster franchise, such as Cruise dangling between lasers and climbing the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai.

"I need you to trust me one last time," says Cruise's character, in what Paramount is marketing as supposedly the final movie of the franchise.