Bringing the blues to Netflix, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is the second in ten planned adaptations of playwright August Wilson's extensive catalogue, hoping to follow in the successful footsteps of 2017's Fences. Directed by George C. Wolfe and produced by Denzel Washington, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom makes the transition from page-and-stage to the film screen - but does it manage to translate the play's success into a worthy feature length?
At an afternoon recording session in 1920s Chicago for the trailblazing "Mother of the Blues" Ma Rainey, tensions flare in the claustrophobic environment as an explosion of stories, truths and lies change the course of their lives forever. Glynn Turman, Colman Domingo and Michael Potts all star in the feature headlined by Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman.
There's no denying the strength of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom stageplay foundations: it tells a powerful story of artistic integrity and survival told through the lens of the Black experience, with a social context that crackles beneath the surface. It does an impressive job of presenting complicated, flawed characters while evoking sympathy through the way they are depicted by an enthusiastic cast trading sharply-written dialogue. Adapting that for the screen, Ruben Santiago-Hudson's writing manages to extrapolate modern-day relevancy, with potent theme work subsequently enriched by the uncomfortable atmosphere and rising tensions that Wolfe captures.
It is the powerhouse performances that give Ma Rainey's Black Bottom its heart and soul. Fantastically led by the incomparable Viola Davis, her transformation into Rainey plays to her strengths; a commanding portrayal of a complicated individual that few people could make as well-drawn as Davis. Despite holding the titular role though, she's often sidelined, disappointing considering that her character work is the most compelling. With particularly sturdy support from the late Chadwick Boseman, who turns in some of the greatest work in his career with this final performance, the whole ensemble fortifies a film with a handful of issues that stop it reaching its full potential.
While a little less accessible than Fences, the previous Wilson adaptation starring Davis and produced by Washington, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom also suffers from a similar problem that held that award-winner back: it struggles to fully escape its stageplay roots. Lacking the cinematic flair from director Wolfe that could have given the screen interpretation a refreshing lease of life in a new medium, it plays out like a filmed stage play, with flat cinematography further trapping it. Even the sets, as well furnished as they are, are reminiscent of that you would see on stage, with few levels or dimensions again leading to something that seems pretty featureless.
If Ma Rainey's Black Bottom intention was to encourage a visit to a theatre production of August Wilson's play, it's done a mighty good job; as a film though, it's not the smoothest transition on to the silver screen, lacking a filmic edge that prevents it from thriving in its own right. First and foremost a star vehicle from its front-of-camera players who more than step up to the challenge, the ensemble are its greatest strengths and engage us throughout a picture that falls somewhat short considering the talent involved.
Summary: It's worth visiting Ma Rainey's Black Bottom for Viola Davis and Chadwick Boseman's performances alone, and while it doesn't make the transition from page to stage to screen seamlessly, it's a solid effort nevertheless.