Judy

source: Judy

source: Judy

One of the worst movies I have seen in a while. It is long, it is boring and it is depressing. Renee neither looks nor sounds like Judy. As a matter of fact nobody in this turkey looked or sounded like the person they were portraying. The younger Judy was no where close to the original. I only way you could tell the Liza character was Liza was the haircut. Renee has done some good acting in other movies but this was not one of them. She just looked like an actress trying to do a poor imitation of Judy.

I have been to see this film today with my wife. We both found it a long haul due to its slow pace. We didn't expect a 'musical' so its not the lack of Garland's song book that was a problem. After the first 15 mins. or so we were fidgeting in our seats! Half an hour later, had I been on my own, I would have probably left; but we stuck it out. A lot of problems arose wondering what was fact and what was 'artistic' licence. The dialogue was stilted and unnatural. It had been adapted from a play which I am sure would have worked better, perhaps the playwright should have done the screenplay. We both regarded the experience as two wasted hours, but it was forgettable so we will do that - forget it.

Wow, what a performance by Renee Zellweger! She obviously did her homework to bring Judy to life on the screen!

Renee Zellwegger is one of my contemporary favorite actresses, but Judy Garland is my all-time favorite entertainer, so it's with great trepidation that I went to see "Judy". After all, Zellwegger neither looks, acts, nor sounds like Garland and Garland was distinctive in all those areas. Big Surprise. Zellwegger is so good she disappears and for nearly 2 hours I thought I was watching Judy Garland, My only criticism is the use of Zellwegger's voice, which is certainly strong, but when you have a film about a woman who had one of the greatest voices of all time, Zellwegger doesn't hold up. Would it have been so bad to use Garland's voice?

Why didn't the producers take a cue from Hungarian Rhapsody's decision to use Freddie Mercury's actual recordings. To listen to non-singer Renee Zellweger try to sing like Judy (with the aid of lots of studio digital adjustments) is a waste of time when one is viewing a film that celebrates her talent. NO ONE SOUNDS LIKE JUDY! This film should have been a cinematic record of Judy...instead it is a film about an actress (Renee) who had the gall to want to use her own voice instead of Judy's for whatever egotistical needs she had to feed.

Sometimes an entire movie boils down to a lead performance, and JUDY is one of those examples. Fortunately, Renee Zellweger is more than up to to the challenge. Zellweger does more than just an imitation here - sure, the ticks and mannerisms that have been copied and parodied for decades are all on display, but, the actress goes for, and largely, attains several more layers. The script follows the "Last Days" scenario seen in so many bio-pics. The doomed character. The flashbacks. The final triumph. The various side characters who represent assorted people throughout that person's life etc. etc.. Still Zellweger is strong enough to overcome most of the cliches. The rest of the cast does well, but outside of Jessie Buckley as her London assistant, they don't get much to do (Michael Gambon in particular has, almost literally, nothing to do). The Production, music (nice to hear a new Gabriel Yared score), and, most critically, the makeup and hair all work to give us a fairly convincing glimpse of Garland's final months in 1969. Theater Director Rupert Goold keeps the viewer focused on his main character despite some melodramatic passages in Tom Edge's screenplay (based on Peter Quilter's play). The nicest touch is a scene with a male couple (Andy Nyman and Daniel Cerqueira) get to spend a night hosting Judy in London. It's a warm human moment that also pays homage to Garland's relationship with the gay community (a status that she bequeathed to her daughter Liza). Zellweger delivers a strong performance that keeps JUDY moving along, if not always smoothly.

"Judy" (2019 release; 118 min.) is a bio-pic about Judy Garland. As the movie opens, we are on the set of "The Wizard of Oz", and Judy is getting lectured by creepy ol' studio boss Louis Meyer. We then go to the present (i.e. the late 60s), where Judy can't afford her Hollywood hotel suite and is in essence homeless. Out of sheer desperation, she and her 2 kids end up at Syd, one of her ex-husbands (yes, she has multiple). When a lucrative offer arrives for a series of shows in London, she reluctantly accepts, as her kids are left with her ex... At this point we are 10 min. into the movie, but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it all plays out. Couple of comments: this movie is a multi-country co-production, and directed by British director Robert Goold, best known for his stage work in London, but he did direct the excellent film "True Story" a few years ago. Here he and the production team are bringing a Hollywood legend's waning years and youth to the big screen, so in certainly isn't covering Garland's entire life. Only 2 eras are covered: when she was 15-16, and her London 'comeback' in early 69. In that sense this is not a traditional bio-pic. Is everything that we see on the big screen an accurate reflection of July's life? I haven't the faintest idea. Most of the film plays out in London, and what we see is a frail woman who is world famous yet ever so lonely. She doesn't know who to trust as people left and right are riding Judy's coattails. And what about her youth at MGM? Even then she was manipulated, intimidated, abused, and taken advantage of (the scenes with Louis Mayer are revealing. Of course, we are watching a movie, with full of performances, and hence it needs to be pointed that Renee Zellweger is absolutely astonishing (and almost not recognizable) in the title role. She IS Judy Garland. Now age 50 (and hence perfectly well place to play the then-47 year old Garland), Zellweger brings a career-defining performance, period. On top of that, she does all of her own singing, and does it quite well. I am gong on record that Zellweger will get a Best Actress Oscar nomination for this, I have no doubt about it. "Judy" premiered at the recent Telluride film festival to immediate acclaim, and the film opened this weekend on not one but two screens of my local art-house theater here in Cincinnati. I couldn't wait to see it. The Friday early evening screening where I saw this at was PACKED, I am happy to report. In some of the more moving scenes of the movie, you could hear a pin drop in the theater. If you have any interest in Judy Garland, or are simply a fan of Renee Zellweger, I would readily recommend that you check this out, be it in the theater, or VOD, or eventually on DVD/Blu-ray, and draw your own conclusion.

Judy Very much in the trend of recent biopics including Oliver Hardy, Freddie Mercury, Elton John and now Judy Garland. No more please! I remember Bette Davis saying to Michael Parkinson years ago "no one is going to make my biopic as my life has been work, work and more work", and thus it clearly was with Judy Garland. We had two hours focusing on the last few months of her life where she was a shadow of her former glory that portrayed her as a drunk, pill-popping wreck. There really was little story here to sustain a movie, whether Renee Zellweger was or was not like Judy she just had to little to work with except a drunken caricature of a broken woman. Renee Zellweger undoubtedly produced some moments that were persuasive and affecting but much was so on the surface we didn't warm and love her portrayal of this vulnerable and above all human person. Much seemed robotic. In terms of the music this was the biggest disappointment of all. Universally flat and uninspiring of one of the most memorable recording stars of the 20th century. Had this element been better it may have redeemed the movie. Overall I was bored by looking at a drunk woman for two hours, we all know about Judy, tell us something we don't know. Lastly apart from her tragic end Judy, I think, had a rather fabulous life with a lot of joy and fun, so this film left a nasty taste in the mouth.