Fans of Sparkle can thank Dreamgirls for getting it out onto DVD. However, time has not been kind as many other movies have covered the same rags to riches story.
Sparkle fans will be glad to see it, but the rest of us might want to consider a rental to warm us up for Dreamgirls.
Three sisters from Harlem, Sister (Lonette McKee), Sparkle (Irene Cara), and Delores (Dwan Smith), go on to become musical stars. The sisters along with Stix (Philip Michael Thomas) and Levi (Dorian Harewood) enter a local talent contest and wow the crowd. Soon Stix is shopping the group around, but nobody wants the group with the two guys so they form Sister and the Sisters (not exactly the most original name). The group quickly finds work at the local club and become a hit.
Sisters and the Sisters
Sister takes up with the local gangster Satin (Tony King) and is soon being abused by him. Levi has taken up with his gang and is soon in trouble. Sister falls deeper into drug abuse and is in turn abused by Satin. Delores tries to help Sister out and ends up hurting Levi. Sparkle and Stix fall in love but find themselves growing apart as the other sisters find their lives going downhill. All the while, their poor mother Effie (Mary Alice) watches the trials and tribulations that her poor daughters have to go through.
Sparkle fans can thank the recent Dreamgirls for finally getting this 1976 movie out onto DVD. Though its impact is lessened by the countless other “from the gutter to stardom” movies that have come and gone. The film has a television movie feel to it and the 1970s cinematography doesn’t help matters. It’s also not helpful that channels like the Lifetime Network crank out this type of thing on a weekly basis these days.
The screenplay is written by Joel Schumacher from a story by Howard Rosenman. It must be that nobody knows black Harlem like Joel Schumacher. I jest, Schumacher would be the last person that I’d think would’ve thought of to pen this type of movie. What the movies does have in its favor are the songs by Curtis Mayfield. Though some of them are poorly lip-synched in the beginning, they’re great songs. They’re even greater when performed by old pros like Aretha Franklin (see special features section).
Sparkle hits the big time
Sparkle is presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) and enhanced for 16x9 televisions. The case is a bit deceptive in that it only lists the theatrical trailer as the sole special feature. However, this is a two disc set.
The second disc is a five track CD of Curtis Mayfield’s songs from the movie and performed by Aretha Franklin. The tracks are “Sparkle,” “Hooked on Your Love,” “Look into your Heart,” “Loving You Baby,” and “Something He can Feel.”
Sparkle has a following and they’ll be elated that it’s finally on DVD. For the rest of us, Sparkle does entertain but its plot is one that’s been done to death. The music by Curtis Mayfield does put it above the others. However, Aretha Franklin is not called the Queen of Soul for nothing and her performance is more powerful than the actual ones from the movie. Sparkle fans will be glad to see it, but the rest of us might want to consider a rental to warm us up for Dreamgirls.
Stix and Sparkle
Sparkle is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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