| Ray | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Taylor Hackford |
| Screenplay by | James L. White |
| Story by |
|
| Produced by |
|
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Paweł Edelman |
| Edited by | Paul Hirsch |
| Music by | Craig Armstrong |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Universal Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 152 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $40 million[1] |
| Box office | $124 million[1] |
Ray is a 2004 Americanbiographicaldrama film focusing on 30 years in the life ofsoul musicianRay Charles.[a] Theindependently produced film was co-produced and directed byTaylor Hackford; it was written byJames L. White from a story by Hackford and White. It starsJamie Foxx as Charles, along withKerry Washington,Clifton Powell,Harry Lennix,Terrence Howard,Larenz Tate,Richard Schiff, andRegina King in supporting roles. Along with Hackford, the film was also produced byStuart Benjamin,Howard Baldwin, and Karen Baldwin.
Ray was released on October 29, 2004, byUniversal Pictures. It received generally positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Foxx's performance and became a box office success, grossing $124 million worldwide on a budget of $40 million.Ray receivedmany accolades and nominations and was nominated in six categories at the77th Academy Awards, includingBest Picture, and won two:Best Actor for Foxx andBest Sound Mixing. Foxx also won Best Actor at theGolden Globe,BAFTA,Screen Actors Guild, andCritics' Choice becoming the second actor to win all five major lead actor awards for the same performance.
Charles had planned to attend a screening of the completed film but died of liver disease in June 2004, four months prior to the premiere.
Ray Charles Robinson is raised in poverty inFlorida by his mother, Aretha. Learning to play piano at an early age, Ray is haunted by the accidental death of his younger brother George, who drowns in their mother's washbasin. Ray loses his vision by age seven and becomes completely blind. Aretha teaches him to be independent, eventually sending him to a school for the deaf and blind.
In 1946, Ray joins a white country band and wears sunglasses to hide his damaged eyes. Two years later, he travels toSeattle and joins a nightclub band, though the club's owner demands sexual favors and controls his money and career. After discovering he is being exploited, Ray signs his own record deal and leaves the band. Touring on theChitlin' Circuit as "Ray Charles", he is introduced toheroin.
Ray is discovered byAhmet Ertegun ofAtlantic Records and records his first hit with Ertegun's song "Mess Around". InHouston, Ray falls in love with Della Bea, a preacher's daughter. Though she and others are unhappy about Ray mixinggospel with his music, he marries Della and continues to gain fame with "I Got a Woman" and "Hallelujah I Love Her So".
A pregnant Della finds Ray's drug kit and confronts him. They reconcile after the birth of their first child, but Ray begins an affair with singerMary Anne Fisher. In 1956, as Ray's popularity grows, he hires a trio to become "The Raelettes" and immediately falls for lead singerMargie Hendrix. They begin their own affair, and a jealous Mary Anne leaves.
Margie asks Ray to let her try heroin, but he orders her to stay away from it. His producers recognize his now-complete addiction as he presents symptoms while recording "Night Time Is the Right Time" on a new electric piano, but despite their concern they recognize his genius and his recording career continues.
A few years later, when Ray's band finishes a set early and the club's owner demands they play the remaining time, Ray performs "What'd I Say" on the spot. His popularity rises through the 1950s and he moves his family toLos Angeles but continues to use heroin, straining his relationships with Della and Margie. In 1960, he signs a better contract withABC Records, negotiating to own hismaster tapes.
Ray continues to develop his music, recording such hits as "Georgia on My Mind". Margie reveals she is pregnant, and cuts off their affair when Ray demands she end the pregnancy. He writes "Hit the Road Jack" with a solo by Margie, who uses her newfound recognition to embark on a solo career, while Ray struggles with his addiction.
In 1961, Ray encounters civil rights protestors outside his concert inAugusta, Georgia. Deciding not to play at the segregated venue, he cancels the concert and is banned from playing in Georgia. After he allows black and white audience members to dance together onstage during a concert inIndianapolis, his hotel room is raided by police. His arrest for heroin possession is made public, to Della's dismay, but his record label has the charges dismissed.
InSt. Louis, Ray performs the country-influenced "I Can't Stop Loving You" and is impressed by announcerJoe Adams, who joins his tour. Ray moves his family toBeverly Hills, and learns that Margie has died of an overdose. Joe alienates Ray's band and his longtime friend and manager Jeff Brown, whom Ray fires for stealing.
In 1965, Ray returns from a concert inMontreal and is again arrested for heroin possession. Dismissing his excuses, Della pleads with him to overcome his habit, and he is sentenced todrug rehabilitation. Suffering vivid nightmares during withdrawal, Ray learns to play chess with Dr. Hacker and Hacker explains to him that his lawyer's arguments with the judge agreed to probation in Boston under the condition that he completes his drug rehab program and agrees to take periodic drug tests. Ray has a vision of George and their mother, who, while praising the fact he became a success, chastises him for letting his addictions cripple him, with George telling Ray that his death was not his fault.
By 1979, Ray has permanently quit heroin and receives an official apology from the state ofGeorgia, which names "Georgia On My Mind" the official state song. Ray goes on to have a long and successful career as a world-famous entertainer until his death in 2004.
The film's production was entirely financed byPhilip Anschutz, through hisBristol Bay Productions company.[3][4] Taylor Hackford said that it took 15 years to make the film;[2] or more specifically, as he later clarified in the liner notes of the soundtrack album, this is how long it took him to secure the financing.[5] It was made on a budget of $40 million.
Charles was given aBraille copy of the film's original script; he objected only to a scene showing him taking up piano grudgingly, and a scene implying that Charles had shown mistress and lead "Raelette" Margie Hendricks how to shootheroin.[6]
Hackford originally had the idea of using a stunt double to make it look like Foxx was playing the piano but was shocked to find out that he went to college on a classical piano scholarship.[7] Foxx does not sing as Charles with exception to cover versions Charles performs in his earlier years.[2]Kanye West andLudacris have since made songs with Foxx singing as Charles in their songs "Gold Digger" and "Georgia", respectively. Instead of studying Ray Charles in person, Foxx watched old video footage to authentically recreate the mannerisms of a young Ray Charles. Foxx also shot the majority of the film blind as he used prosthetics to cover his eyes.[8]
Hackford stated that while Anschutz agreed to finance the film, he demanded that it be PG-13, which caused Hackford to walk away from the film twice.[9] Because Charles andAhmet Ertegun asked him to make the movie, he agreed to do the film as a PG-13 rating. The film was rated PG-13 for "depiction of drug addiction, sexuality and some thematic elements".
Hackford stated that no studio was interested in backing the movie.[2] After it was shot independently, Universal Pictures stepped in to distribute it.[9] Part of the reason Universal Pictures released it was because one of its executives used to hitchhike to Ray Charles concerts.
The film's score was composed byCraig Armstrong.Ray debuted at the2004 Toronto International Film Festival.[10]
Ray was released in theaters on October 29, 2004. The film went on to become a box-office hit, earning $75 million in the U.S. with an additional $50 million internationally, bringing its worldwide gross to $125 million.[1]
OnRotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 79% based on 206 reviews, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "An engrossing and energetic portrait of a great musician's achievements and foibles,Ray is anchored by Jamie Foxx's stunning performance as Ray Charles."[11] OnMetacritic the film has a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12] Audiences surveyed byCinemaScore gave the film a rare "A+" grade.[13]
Roger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times wrote: "The movie would be worth seeing simply for the sound of the music and the sight of Jamie Foxx performing it. That it looks deeper and gives us a sense of the man himself is what makes it special." Ebert gave it a full 4 out of 4 stars.[14]Richard Corliss ofTime praised the cast, saying "If there were an Oscar for ensemble acting, Ray would win in a stroll."[15] Peter Travers ofRolling Stone wrote: "Jamie Foxx gets so far inside the man and his music that he and Ray Charles seem to breathe as one."[16]
According to music criticRobert Christgau, "Foxx does the impossible—radiates something approaching the charisma of the artist he's portraying... that's the only time an actor has ever brought a pop icon fully to life on-screen."[17]
In the wake of his performance as Charles in the film, Foxx featured on hip-hop songs that sampled Charles' songs:
The film's credits state thatRay is based on true events, but includes some characters, names, locations, and events which have been changed and others which have been "fictionalized for dramatization purposes." Examples of the fictionalized scenes include:
| Studio albums | |
|---|---|
| Posthumous studio creations | |
| Live albums | |
| Notable compilations | |
| Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles | |
| OtherBillboard Charts #1 singles | |
| Grammy Awarded Works (not included above) | |
| See also | |
