Respect Parent Guide

To some extent, all musical biopics are retellings of the same story. A young person has exceptional musical talent. They struggle to reach the big time. When they succeed professionally, their relationships collapse as they lose their battles with their inner demons and surrender to alcohol or drugs. Finally, they either die or rehabilitate themselves and resume their careers, but with greater wisdom and maturity. Respect fits neatly into that familiar framework.

The movie opens in Detroit in 1952 where ten year old Aretha Franklin (Skye Dakota Turner) lives with her pastor father (Forest Whitaker), grandmother (Kimberly Scott), and sisters (Saycon Sengbloh, Hailey Kilgore, and Brenda Nicole Moorer). The child is a gifted vocalist and her father often gets her out of bed to sing at his parties. She’s joyful and effervescent until two terrible experiences dim her light and set off a lifelong battle with self-loathing and despair.

Despite her personal struggles, Aretha’s (Jennifer Hudson) talent continues to blossom. Her father becomes her manager, taking her on church tours where she sings gospel classics and bolsters the civil rights movement. He eventually lands a record contract for her, but Aretha chafes at his control and finally declares her independence. After years of rising album sales, Aretha achieves stardom with “Respect”, released in 1967.

True to form, Aretha’s success in the music biz is balanced out by personal challenges – an abusive husband, trouble with record labels, and alcoholism. But throughout her struggles, she is sustained by her family and her profound love for the gospel music that nurtured her talent and eventually saves it.

Aretha Franklin’s life is a matter of public record and the biopic formula is well known, so you might wonder if there’s any reason to watch this film. The answer is, yes, there is. This isn’t just a film about a famous woman’s career. It’s a film about surviving and growing in the face of adversity. It’s a tribute to resilience and the power of faith and family.

The impact of Aretha’s story is intensified by the two talented actresses who portray her on screen. Skye Dakota Turner plays the youthful Aretha with impressive authenticity for so young an actress. Her ability to go from cheerful to numb is devastating. Jennifer Hudson also delivers an emphatic performance – showing Aretha’s focus, her challenges in asserting herself, her faith in her talent, and her strength in overcoming her demons. Most importantly, Ms. Hudson has the pipes to successfully belt out the Queen of Soul’s signature tunes so convincingly that audiences will forget they’re not watching Aretha herself.

There are many challenging topics in the film, including sexual abuse, alcoholism, and domestic violence, but director Liesl Tommy exercises great sensitivity in bringing the script to life. There is no graphic content; just enough to let the audience know what the characters are dealing with before the movie focuses on the consequences of these issues. The production still contains some negative content and potentially disturbing images, but the PG-13 rating is appropriate. Whether or not parents are comfortable watching with their teens is a matter for personal judgment but it’s difficult to ignore the message of Aretha’s greatest hit: “All I’m asking for is a little respect.”