Quiero Bailar con Alguien: La Historia de Whitney Houston

Can we please stop making all musical biopics the exact same movie? I'm so bored of the template. Instead of coming off as a celebration of Whitney Houston's life and career, I found "I Wanna Dance With Somebody" to be a hollow attempt at re-creating the success of "Bohemian Rhapsody". The strategy the filmmakers took on? Re-make "Bohemian Rhapsody" beat-for-beat with a Whitney Houston focus instead of Queen. This movie is painfully generic, it really disappointed me. And it's not even like the movie itself is bad, it is just that we've seen so many music biopics recently - and they all have the same story! Say what you will about "Elvis" but at least Baz Luhrmann tried to do something different with that one stylistically. Here, everything was bland, there was nothing to make this stand out from the crowd. The generic nature of this film would be fine if this was a better film, but unfortunately because this is so similar to other music biopics, it just comes off as repetitive and inferior in both performance and filmmaking.

Naomi Ackie is fine as Whitney, but she never really elevated the material off the page or made me believe she was Whitney. Instead I just saw her trying to be the next Rami Malek and Austin Butler, and personally I don't think she is quite on that level yet as an actor.

The movie also felt very shallow, it never went deep into exploring Whitney's life, instead just went from scene to scene checking off the boxes of major events in Whitney's life, carefully following the template of the music biopic. The script really was not anything special, and honestly I found it didn't work as a narrative at all. There was no conflict, no tension, nothing to keep me invested as an audience member. It is true to life, Whitney was indeed very talented and her talent was recognized from the start, but in a story you need your protagonist to go through some sort of struggle. I never felt Whitney ever hit any obstacles here, aside from minor relationship and substance-abuse struggles that it barely touched on. It literally just felt like the movie was going through the motions, complete with a finale that featured an iconic performance from Whitney.

I'm sorry, I know I am really ripping into this film, but I am just so disappointed that it did nothing to make itself stand out from the rest of music biopics. It felt like no one behind the camera was trying to make it special. Frankly, Whitney Houston deserves so much better.

I'm sure for most audience members, this will be enjoyable! It has an A cinemascope and a very high audience score on rotten tomatoes, so I am definitely in the minority. It is a very likeable movie, I just took major issues with how generic it was. I've seen this same movie countless times before, I'm just so bored with the format. The movie was good, just good, and I wanted it to be great. It should have been great. At least the music was...

This is definitely a must watch for fans. Filled with nostalgia and emotions. I teared up throughout the movie. They used Whitney's voice for the singing scenes which got me So Emotional. Pun intended!

While it's obvious she doesn't look like Whitney, Naomi did an amazing job. She nailed Whitney's mannerisms and body language. The actor playing Clive Davis was spot on as well. What made the movie come to life were the styling, outfits, makeup, and hair. The music video sets were all spot on. All the staff who worked on them deserve awards.

I've seen the biopics, documentaries, and interviews. I've read the books written by Cissy, Bobby, Narada, and Robyn. Some of the information presented in the movie seemed inaccurate and were purposely left out (ex: no mention of Eddie Murphy). For instance, it's publicly known that it was Kevin Costner and not Clive who asked Whitney to sing "I Will Always Love You".

I was disappointed by the portrayals of John Houston and Robyn Crawford. The movie portrayed John as an aggressive father who only cares about making and spending money off of her daughter. There's some truth to this. But according to Robyn's book, John was gentle and genuinely cared about Whitney's well-being. The movie only painted John as the greedy one. But real fans know John wasn't the only one.

As for Robyn, the movie portrayed her as someone totally opposite of who she really is. Real fans know that Robyn is soft-spoken, calm, and someone who genuinely cared about Whitney.

I was not happy they portrayed Whitney aloof ignoring fans when fans asked her for an autograph/photograph. I'm not saying that hasn't happened before. But there have been countless times on camera showing that she was happy to meet fans.

There was no mention of Whitney's personal assistant and close confidant, Sylvia. At the very least they could've had an extra with no lines putting a towel over Whitney (which Sylvia did during the world tours).

There was little mention of things that really mattered to Whitney such as her faith, the community, and causes. I wish they focused on that more.

Don't expect the movie to reveal things that aren't already known to the public. The movie doesn't go deep into details.

Critics say there should've been more focus on her struggles and what's not known. I disagree because the world already knows too much. She did not like her personal life being all out there. Most of all, she wanted to be remembered for her music. The movie respected that by presenting what's already known (all the ups and the downs), and by raising her legacy and achievements which were once heavily overshadowed by her struggles.

Let's start with the most important fact: Naomi Ackie kills it as Whitney Houston in "I Wanna Dance with Somebody." When her casting was announced, some were put off by their lack of close physical resemblance. No matter: Ackie handily disappears into the role. She is particularly expert in capturing the cadence of Whitney's speech, conveying her fiercely independent personality in all its charisma and occasional prickliness.

This is a movie that puts Whitney's career front and center, with a special emphasis on her relationship with Arista records founder Clive Davis. Stanley Tucci makes for an impressively spot-on Davis, although perhaps his portrayal is a bit too reverent. The scene where he confronted her over her spiraling drug addiction was tough to watch. I appreciated the lack of cheap psychological gimmicks to explain away her troubles.

Whitney's important, long-lasting lesbian relationship with creative director Robyn Crawford is finally given its fair shake here. Crawford is a deeply fascinating figure in her own right, and their scenes together pop. Apparently, Crawford has written a book on her experiences and I'm very curious to check it out.

The musical highlight is the near superhuman medley of "I Loves You Porgy", "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" and "I Have Nothing" from the 1994 American Music Awards. Whitney's original voice is thankfully used for the singing parts, as if any other choice was possible for the greatest vocalist of the 20th century!

Music biopics do seem to bring out a special kind of snobbery and faux-cleverness from critics at times. Were you really not expecting to see Whitney singing in church or signing her first record deal? These are the facts of her life! They are told beautifully and compellingly here.

Whitney Houston was truly the voice of her generation and one of the greatest voices of all time. I have been a fan of Whitney Houston my whole life. It is always hard to do a biopic and sum up someone's life in a single film. But the film does justice to Whitney's life and career. Naomi Ackie is the embodiment of Whitney and gives a great performance. No one could ever replicate Whitney's voice but Naomi certainly looks the part. She deserved an Oscar nod, it is shocking she did not get nominated.

The film did not shy away from the struggles Whitney faced in her life. Drugs were always in the picture, it is for a number of celebrities. But Whitney sadly got involved with very bad company. Bobby Brown spelt the downfall of this hugely talented songbird. If only she stayed away from that talentless waste of space she might have been alive and going strong. It is absolutely tragic to see the fate Whitney suffered. Like so many celebrities before her she became a prisoner of her own fame and indulged in substances that were too easy to obtain.

This film is underrated and deserves more credit. Overall a decent film and homage to this beautiful legend (Nippy) who has left us with timeless music that is in a league of its own.

"I will always love you."

No matter that the bio of Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody is riddled with pop-singer-tragic-bout with drugs, leading to her death because she remains the highest grossing singer of all time, not bad when you consider she keeps the fame fellowship with Barbra, Aretha, and Judy.

From Gospel to R & B, the Jersey-girl Whitney gradually becomes known as "The Voice." Therein lies a potential rub in the picture as the glamorous Naomi Ackie, an acceptable singer but apparently qualified to lip-synch only to Houston's transcendent voice. Knowing this before I entered the theater, I was won over within minutes: Ackie's lip-synching is flawless, the best I have ever seen. Houston's cool modulation and momentous key changes are here in reality.

I fretted not, for I accepted Ackie as Whitney, looks and voice, in a stunning interpretation of the pop princess turned queen. In a veritable flash of a moment after being discovered at Sweetwater's, she is shepherded by the estimable Arista Records president Clive Davis (Stanley Tucci in his most urbane role ever) through her career, respectful as he was about what she liked to sing, and uncanny in offering her songs that catapulted her to fame.

When Davis introduces her on The Merv Griffin Show, she stops hearts with "Home" from The Wiz and allows director Kasi Lemmons to set up the operative heart-breaking motif of her longing for a home life that Bobby Brown (Ashton Sanders-remember him from Moonlight?) will never give her.

Whitney's character arc is well known from "America's Sweetheart" (an appellation she hated) to drug-addled has-been, not unlike Winehouse and Spears. (Her unconventional love with Robyn Crawford (Nafessa Williams) brought her misery as well). Because so many singers, male and female, fell under the sway of narcotics, it's possible this biopic has been undersubscribed because of the almost cliched story line.

In addition, Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody downplays the abusive role Bobby Brown, probably because of his attorneys threatening lawsuits. Although I am uncomfortable with graphic violence on the screen, some of it would have given an authentic edge to her troubled story. As would have scenes depicting her actual encounter with drugs.

This Whitney biopic may soften the effects of her addictions, but it never fails in featuring and interpreting the music that brought wealth and fame. Kudos to Naomi. Not so to the drug overdose that led to her drowning.

Take heart, this story lingers frequently on full songs in her real voice. It can't get better than that.