As a HUGE fan of the original "Sparkle" from my childhood, it took some getting used to all the changes that were made to the new version, but somehow it worked. Mara Brock Akil is a talented Hollywood Showrunner and I've been a longtime fan of hers.
Whitney Houston played her part well as the over protective, bible toting, stern, and bitter single mom of three young women with a troublesome past of her own, who eventually comes around to showing support for her daughter Sparkle's dream of achieving secular music stardom.
The ads portray Cee-Lo Green as if he is a main character, but he simply has a short cameo role. Carmen Ejogo plays the part of "Sister" with a little less UMPH and sassiness than the original, vivacious Lonette McKee, but I loved the fact that Akil was able to give us a little more depth to most of the characters, especially Mike Epps as "Satin." He did an outstanding job, although he played the part of a famous comedian (go-figure), as opposed to a drug dealer like the original. Nonetheless, the guy has acting chops for sure! The oh so gorgeous Jordin Sparks and talented Derek Luke played the roles of Sparkle and Stix wonderfully.
What I would have liked to see was a bit more of the Levi/ Sister relationship before Satin wooed her away, as in the original film. The breathtaking Tika Sumpter played the part of Delores to a Tee, and there was a stronger bond of sisterhood the remake was able to explore.
There are just some unforgettable highlights in the original story that needed to stay, like the Stix & Satin alley fight, Levi working his way up the hustlers food chain. In the new film, he's on the bottom, and the next thing we know he's on top and giving Satin a dose of his own medicine, but we never learn how he got there. There was brutality with Satin and Sister, but the original "crawl" scene would have worked just as well in the remake. Also, there's never any discord between Sparkle and Stix. He says he's leaving, but never does, and she just takes him back with open arms. Delores desire to leave and become a doctor came from watching her mother struggle as a maid her entire life, but in the new film, they came from a middle class family, so there was no struggle.
Overall, it was a good movie that worked with all the changes, but if I had my wish, I would have wanted to see just a little bit more PAIN and STRUGGLE that sparked the original "Sparkle."
Whitney Houston played her part well as the over protective, bible toting, stern, and bitter single mom of three young women with a troublesome past of her own, who eventually comes around to showing support for her daughter Sparkle's dream of achieving secular music stardom.
The ads portray Cee-Lo Green as if he is a main character, but he simply has a short cameo role. Carmen Ejogo plays the part of "Sister" with a little less UMPH and sassiness than the original, vivacious Lonette McKee, but I loved the fact that Akil was able to give us a little more depth to most of the characters, especially Mike Epps as "Satin." He did an outstanding job, although he played the part of a famous comedian (go-figure), as opposed to a drug dealer like the original. Nonetheless, the guy has acting chops for sure! The oh so gorgeous Jordin Sparks and talented Derek Luke played the roles of Sparkle and Stix wonderfully.
What I would have liked to see was a bit more of the Levi/ Sister relationship before Satin wooed her away, as in the original film. The breathtaking Tika Sumpter played the part of Delores to a Tee, and there was a stronger bond of sisterhood the remake was able to explore.
There are just some unforgettable highlights in the original story that needed to stay, like the Stix & Satin alley fight, Levi working his way up the hustlers food chain. In the new film, he's on the bottom, and the next thing we know he's on top and giving Satin a dose of his own medicine, but we never learn how he got there. There was brutality with Satin and Sister, but the original "crawl" scene would have worked just as well in the remake. Also, there's never any discord between Sparkle and Stix. He says he's leaving, but never does, and she just takes him back with open arms. Delores desire to leave and become a doctor came from watching her mother struggle as a maid her entire life, but in the new film, they came from a middle class family, so there was no struggle.
Overall, it was a good movie that worked with all the changes, but if I had my wish, I would have wanted to see just a little bit more PAIN and STRUGGLE that sparked the original "Sparkle."