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Judy (2019)

Robert Lynch

By Robert Lynch
in Movies

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kiddo82

kiddo82

I can take or leave Zellweger but from the looks of the trailer she seems to be pulling it off.  Surprised that it sounds like she's doing her own singing but since it's from the end of Garland's life/career I can buy it.  Much like Freddie Mercury, Judy Garland's voice in her prime was so distinct that it would be hard to listen to anyone, no matter how good, try to replicate it.  

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Robert Lynch

Robert Lynch

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2 hours ago, kiddo82 said:

I can take or leave Zellweger but from the looks of the trailer she seems to be pulling it off.  Surprised that it sounds like she's doing her own singing but since it's from the end of Garland's life/career I can buy it.  Much like Freddie Mercury, Judy Garland's voice in her prime was so distinct that it would be hard to listen to anyone, no matter how good, try to replicate it.  

I just found out the actress playing young Judy is the same age as the real one when she did Wizard of Oz. I thought that was cool.

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zillabreeze

zillabreeze

Just saw the trailer today on big screen.  Well damn.  This will play or it will tank. I've watched a bajillion "Judy" docs, RZ is looking pretty convincingly ragged.

RZ wouldn't be my first choice, but I'll give her the benefit.  After all, Reese has surprised me more than once.  

It'll be interesting to see where they go with the body image truth.  We all act like this a new thing.  But oh my, it goes back decades.  Judy was on badass amphetemines as a child.  Bingeing and purging to be Dorothy...

Her mother, the producers, jacked her up so bad.  How awful that it went that way. Judy could have just been a wee curvy and sang!  That voice was magic!  

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Robert Lynch

Robert Lynch

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33 minutes ago, zillabreeze said:

Just saw the trailer today on big screen.  Well damn.  This will play or it will tank. I've watched a bajillion "Judy" docs, RZ is looking pretty convincingly ragged.

RZ wouldn't be my first choice, but I'll give her the benefit.  After all, Reese has surprised me more than once.  

It'll be interesting to see where they go with the body image truth.  We all act like this a new thing.  But oh my, it goes back decades.  Judy was on badass amphetemines as a child.  Bingeing and purging to be Dorothy...

Her mother, the producers, jacked her up so bad.  How awful that it went that way. Judy could have just been a wee curvy and sang!  That voice was magic!  

I know. Leo B. Mayer. What a horrible man. He might have made MGM the way it was, but as a human being....let's not go there.

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zillabreeze

zillabreeze

36 minutes ago, Robert Lynch said:

I know. Leo B. Mayer. What a horrible man. He might have made MGM the way it was, but as a human being....let's not go there.

But why shouldn't we go there?  I'm a total TCM kinda gal.  Love my Kate H. Joan C and Bette D.  The casting couch was a thing.  Those guys were awful.  The actresses were stellar all by themselves!  Why did they have to boff those old bastards to get a job?

I do love my old movies, those actresses could rock a scene.  Have to diddle an old money fart to get a gig?  Why?

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IWantCandy71

IWantCandy71

I'm surprised about some people being surprised over RZ's singing. Chicago/Roxie, anyone ? Seventeen years ago (yikes) but she really belted it out.

The movie falls under the same pitfall as most biopics. It does the "this happened, then this happened...." type of storytelling, rather than taking the events and making a story out of them. Overall, the movie was just average to fairly good at times. Strong performances from Rufus Sewell and the other supporting cast. I could watch RS read a pamphlet about organizing a sock drawer and I would be riveted. I wanted more of Sid and Judy, I thought the two actors had great chemistry. Take note, Hollywood. 

RZ completely inhabited JG. So much so, that she disappeared and I only saw JG. Right down to that weird spacey look in her eyes (don't know if it was being high or drunk IRL that caused it or what) that JG would get a lot of times when she sang. Her mannerisms, everything. It was spooky at times. I did not expect to do the ugly cry at the end. Honestly, the last twenty minutes of the movie-if you didn't at least tear up or feel your heart break for her, ah well. Maybe I'm just overly sensitive, but if I am, so was everyone else in the theater. The cake scene, as someone who has suffered off and on all her life with body image issues and eating disorders, my heart was crushed. I was so happy when she took a bite. Isn't that sad ? 

I had to bite down on my bottom lip to keep from sobbing when she started talking about what "Somewhere over the Rainbow" was about. When she started singing it, I just gave up and let the tears flow. Such emotion ! RZ really "got" it, and that made all the difference. What happened during the song, I have heard, actually happened during her last performance, but the rumor is, the audience reaction IRL was vastly different than what happened in the movie. I think the director just wanted to end a tragic story on a slightly upbeat note, but then the final moments of reminding the audience she died just several months later at the age of 47...you could have heard a pin drop in the theater and no one moved during the credits. I could hear other people crying as well. 

Best female performance in a movie I've seen in at least the last five years, if not the last decade. The only other movie actress who has moved me like that in recent memory has been Sally Hawkins. RZ totally deserves best actress awards at both the Oscars and Golden Globes.

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Shannon L.

Shannon L.

5 hours ago, Dejana said:

I knew very little about Judy Garland when I saw this movie, but I felt like something was off without being able to really explain it.  This video commentary is exactly how I felt about the movie. 

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IWantCandy71

IWantCandy71

On 10/7/2019 at 9:58 PM, Steph J said:

Renee Zellweger was excellent.  Ballsy, too - it takes guts to do your own singing while playing Judy freaking Garland.

I've seen a lot of comments that Renee shouldn't have been Judy because she didn't sound like her and didn't look like her. When has anyone ever sounded like or looked like anyone but themselves without tons of makeup and hairpieces, etc ? LOL I guess for me it' s just a silly reason to knock RZ's performance or the movie itself. The point it, did RZ do justice to Judy as a person ? Was it a respectful, layered, loving performance ? Yes and yes, and that should be all that matters. I normally will rebel against anyone telling me someone was so great that they deserve a Oscar, with two months still left in the year for performances to judge. But I do think this is one exception. She was that good, and deserves at least one win for this. OTOH, I also think any nom or win will be just as much about paying respect and tribute to JG as it is the actress RZ.

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vavera4ka

vavera4ka

Zellweger was great. That's basically the only good thing i found in the movie. It could have been really good and emotional, but the editing and sometimes lighting and writing was so botchy. Just when i was beginning to get into the scene they yanked me right out of it. 

also... is Sewell that busy and expensive or is Zellweger? I swear, the scene when Syd comes to London... I doubt the actors ever saw each other for rehearsal or filming.

It's Sewell's bread and butter to hold the scene, create tension and play off another good actor. The whole cutting back and forth between "window" and "wall" and cutting off the line right at the end of a phrase in what supposed to be an emotional flowing argument... such a waste of talent. both RZ and RS are miles much better than that scene. 

idk. i felt nothing but annoyance. i know what movie was trying to make me feel, and RZ did all she could to help it, but nope... 

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Browncoat

Browncoat

My dissenting opinion is that I did not think Renee Zellweger disappeared into the role at all.  Except in long shots and silhouettes, I could always see her.  I wasn't impressed with her singing, either, though I thought she did a great job in "Chicago".  I don't remember her being so nasal before. 

It just didn't resonate with me the same way that other recent biopics have.

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EtheltoTillie

EtheltoTillie

On 10/29/2019 at 9:47 PM, Browncoat said:

My dissenting opinion is that I did not think Renee Zellweger disappeared into the role at all.  Except in long shots and silhouettes, I could always see her.  I wasn't impressed with her singing, either, though I thought she did a great job in "Chicago".  I don't remember her being so nasal before. 

It just didn't resonate with me the same way that other recent biopics have.

Joining you in this.  I'm finally catching it on demand.  I never saw it in the theater, because from what I could tell it wouldn't be very good.  I did not like the performance, and the story is just dull/creepy.  The young Judy looks NOTHING like the real Judy, so that doesn't work for me.  I don't know why anyone thought this movie needed to be made.  I am about halfway done and probably won't finish. 

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Pickles Aplenty

Pickles Aplenty

(edited)
On 10/29/2019 at 6:47 PM, Browncoat said:

My dissenting opinion is that I did not think Renee Zellweger disappeared into the role at all.  Except in long shots and silhouettes, I could always see her.  I wasn't impressed with her singing, either, though I thought she did a great job in "Chicago".  I don't remember her being so nasal before. 

It just didn't resonate with me the same way that other recent biopics have.

This is exactly how I feel.  I also thought the actress playing young Judy didn't look or sound a thing like her, and it was distracting.

It's not a bad movie, but I didn't like it.  I kind of hope Renée Zellweger doesn't win an Oscar for this, because I just wasn't buying her portrayal.  I thought Judy Davis did a better job, in Life With Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows.  I'll return to my cold little corner, now.

Edited by Billina
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Spartan Girl

Spartan Girl

Watched this on demand last night. Renee was good but I liked the girl who played young Judy too. Her scenes were heartbreaking. Jesus, poor Judy. If half of that stuff is true, no wonder Judy was so messed up. Louis B Mayer was a pig. 

I too am amazed Judy made it to 47. I don't know if Renee really disappeared into the role, but they definitely gave her the haggard look of a grown child star on her last legs.

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rmontro

rmontro

On 10/29/2019 at 9:47 PM, Browncoat said:

My dissenting opinion is that I did not think Renee Zellweger disappeared into the role at all.  Except in long shots and silhouettes, I could always see her. 

I could always see Zellweger, but I could always see Judy too.  I thought she did a great job.  And since this thread seems to be tracking the awards, she did win the Oscar, so good for her.

I thought the movie was very good, I'm not sure why a lot of the responses here seem lukewarm.  I could have done with a better ending though.

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Suzn

Suzn

I watched this yesterday on Prime, so I'm late to the comments.  What a sad, flat, and I think, pointless movie.  We see Judy as the wreck she became and flashbacks to her early days, showing how her life went wrong from the beginning.  I'm not sure how such a tragic life is best depicted, but it might have been good to show that there were a few high points in her life.

Renee Zellweger: it looked like she captured the look and mannerisms, so it was a good impersonation, but I never felt that I couldn't see Renee.

My biggest problem with the movie was the singing.  I don't think anyone can sound like Judy Garland and it's pretty much an insult to have anyone try.  Renee did not sound like Judy Garland!  And there were points she sang badly and if it was on purpose, to show that Judy was deteriorating, that would be awful.

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stonehaven

stonehaven

Saw this on Hulu and loved Renee's portrayal but the movie was just sad. I know a bit about her acting and marriages but I never felt like I got any deep insight into her talent and passion. It's like she was just forced into the showbiz life and never looked back. 

I will say, it made me glad that there are child labor laws for movies now, even if some things in Hollywood are still seedy.

Okay movie, empty subject but a great performance.

 

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