Loved the actors but the film didn't seem to have any real depth to it. The music is brilliant as are the actors that play both Mahalia and also Mildred. It wasn't gritty enough though somehow. All a bit sanitised I felt. Look.

It seems with lifetime their biopics are usally missing some important components. The script for this wasn't good. Some of the casting was just bad. While Danielle Brooks' singing was pretty good her acting was not. There were, however, some moments in the performances that she did certain things that reminded me of watching Mahalia but those moments were few and very far between in this film. I also wish they had picked more well known Mahalia songs. Danielle can sing but her tone honestly wasn't close to Mahalia's even though at moments she did a pretty good job. There were also a lot of pc sounding speeches that did not reflect Mahalia's beliefs but i think the beliefs of the writers and producers of this film.

This was boring but i kept it on thinking maybe it would be more intersting but it wasn't. The actor playing MLK was so dull my goodness, lol. Some of the wigs they had on Danielle were on point though with what we've seen Mahalia wear before, I gotta say that. Wadrobe did a pretty decent job. That Aretha movie was better than this and I couldn't even finish watching that. If you're looking for a biopic like Ray or the Jacksons please know that this aint it. This is definitely forgettable.

Mahalia Jackson (Grammy award wining singer and Orange Is the New Black actress Danielle Brooks) became the Queen of Gospel as well as the voice of the civil rights movement. With a four decade career, Jackson was one of the reasons why gospel blues became so important to black churches throughout the U. S. And more importantly, during a time when racial segregation existed, she sold an estimated 22 million records and performed in front of black and white audiences.

The granddaughter of former slaces, Jackson was born into poverty in New Orleans. The church and music was her salvation, which is why she always wanted to deliver the Word of the Lord through her music. After years of being a singer anywhere she could find a place to sing, including funerals and churches, her recording of "Move On Up a Little Higher" reached number two on the Billboard charts. She did that without singing secular music, something she stuck to for her entire career.

With a story by Bettina Gilois (who also wrote Bessie, a movie about Jackson's inspiration Bessie Smith) and a teleplay by Todd Kreidler, this tells the life story of Jackson in a very dynamic way. It's directed by Kenny Leon, who directed the Hairspray Live! And The Wiz Live! TV movies.

The moments with Dr. Martin Luther King (Rob Demery) are very moving, particularly when he asks her to sing a song that he loves at his funeral, should he die before her. Of course, he did, and the moments where we see how Jackson was part of the civil rights movement should remind us that this was only sixty years ago.

While a Lifetime movie, this could have played theaters. For a subject that I wouldn't think I'd enjoy, I can't believe how much I was moved by this movie.