Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody

This film begins with Whitney in church, singing for her mother in clubs. I loved how it explored these early years, her gaining her recording contract- having record-breaking success with her debut album and second album. Iconic songs like How Will I Know, I Wanna Dance with Somebody. The film explores her success and relationships as her careers shoots into a stratosphere only Michael Jackson could understand or appreciate, especially during The Bodyguard era. That soundtrack remains the biggest-selling soundtrack in history. I Will Always Love You remains the best-selling physical single by a female artist. That song is woven between pinical moments in Whitney’s life in the film.

The film then rapidly moves on without full exploration into the late 90s, early 00s, and shows Whitney facing personal and professional pressures as she matures, dealing with family issues and insecurities. The film ultimately shows the world that although iconic, Whitney was human- a human who had anxieties and struggles. Perhaps even a human hiding her true self from the world and her loved ones, maybe even hiding her true self from herself. The film touches on drug use throughout, leading to her untimely and unfortunate death aged 48 in 2012.

Overall, I loved the films musical performances, the production and its storytelling- I just wished it was longer to fully explore her career, the challenges and her relationships in greater depth. Apparently, the Blu-ray will have extended/ deleted scenes. A directors cut would be amazing!

Whitney Houston was an icon, a legend and a record-breaking artist. She was, and still is, the most awarded female artist in history. This film celebrates her greatness, and most importantly, her music. I highly recommend this movie if you love biopic films such as Elvis, Bohemian Rhapsody.