Ray, Blu-ray (2004/2011)
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington
Director: Taylor Hackford
Studio: Bristol Bay/Universal 61112068 [2/1/11]
Video: 1.85:1 for 16:9 1080p HD color
Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS Surround, DTS Express, DD 2.0
Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French
Extras: Intro & feature commentary track by Taylor Hackford, Deleted scenes, Uncut music performances from the film, “Stepping Into the Part” – Foxx’s transformation into Ray Charles, “Ray Remembered,” A Look Inside Ray, The Filmmakers’ Journey, The Women of Ray, Ray: An American Story, BD Live, Pocket BLU, U-Control
Length: 152 minutes
Rating: *****
Many have observed that Jamie Foxx did such a fantastic job portraying Ray Charles in this biopic that he almost seems to be channeling him. He won a Best Actor Oscar – one of the two Oscars Ray garnered. Hackford did this as an independent production because he felt the big studios would not be pleased with his dealing forthrightly with the dark side of Charles’ life – including his heroin addiction, treatment of women, and hard-headed business decisions such as leaving the label that “discovered” him for ABC Paramount.
The period covered is mostly the 1960s, with Ray’s eventually shaking his heroin habit the penultimate scene. Hackford wasn’t interested in the many hit albums and concerts Ray had after that, although it might be argued that his greatest albums all came while he was still a heroin addict. Childhood scenes in a poor Northern Florida village return again and again during the film – and in brilliant color rather than the sepia often used for flashbacks. The scenes usually have to do with advice his mother gave him, or the incident that plagues him his whole life – guilt over not doing anything when his younger brother accidentally drown in a washtub. The director wanted these scenes bright and colorful because they were Ray’s only visual memories since he very shortly lost his eyesight.
The director’s commentary track is very useful, especially in conjunction with some of the deleted scenes. I had no idea that Ray Charles himself worked with Foxx on an accurate portrayal of himself, and even composed some original music for the soundtrack and adjust some tunes to fit the screen images. (Charles died in 2004.) Foxx’s own voice and piano playing are heard early in the film, and later he lip-syncs with astonishing accuracy to Charles’ famous songs. But the hands on the piano keys are always Foxx’s – he even plays a bit of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata at one point. They pantomimed the mic being swung away from him at the beginning of one tune, to fit the live recording they had of the tune, in which Ray was off-mic at the beginning. Ray’s friendly relationship with Ahmet Ertegun and Jerry Wexler at Atlantic Records is shown to be so much more positive than most musicians’ relationships with label people at that period. Though he had his serious flaws, Charles was a unique and amazing genius of a performer who never gave up and became a star in spite of his blindness. He also took a courageous stand that cost him many concert dates by refusing to perform at racially-segregated venues in the South.
The Blu-ray transfer is perfect, and providing the longer uncut versions of some of the song performances is much appreciated. One might be moved to pick up on some of the Blu-rays and DVDs of actual Ray Charles concerts after seeing Ray. The bonus extras are all fascinating, and Hackford’s detailed comments kept me listening to his commentary track beginning to end on one of my viewings.
— John Sunier
