"In Taylor Hackford's "Ray," Jamie Foxx delivers the season's most mesmerizing performance as late singer Ray Charles."
Angela Baldassarre SYMPATICO.CA
"Hackford has made a film that -- like Charles' music itself -- breaks your heart, makes it brim with joy and ultimately fills it with a deep belief in beauty and salvation."
Paul Clinton CNN
"It sings, and it swings."
Richard Corliss TIME MAGAZINE
"Foxx gives one of the year's best performances, and early talk about an Oscar nomination is entirely justified."
Robert Denerstein DENVER ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS
"Anchored by Foxx's astonishingly powerful performance, this moving and engaging biographical film ... is also director Hackford's finest film."
Rich Cline SHADOWS ON THE WALL
"The genius of Ray Charles' music is matched by the brilliance of Jamie Foxx's performance."
Jackie K Cooper JACKIEKCOOPER.COM
"Ray reveals Foxx for what he truly is: a gifted and immensely talented actor."
Spence D IGN FILMFORCE
"Great music, great stories, great performance."
Cherryl Dawson and Leigh Ann Palone THEMOVIECHICKS.COM
"Ray has the sound, drive, heat and wallop of Ray Charles."
David Elliott SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE
"Jamie Foxx should start clearing some space on his mantle -- his extraordinary, transcendent performance as music legend Ray Charles in the exuberant Ray is the one to beat for Best Actor come Oscar night."
Lou Lumenick NEW YORK POST
The Inside Story
"Ray is the rare Hollywood biopic that does justice to the heroism, as well as the demons, of an American genius." Owen Gleiberman ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
It's fair to say that there wouldn't be too many people around the world who haven't heard the name Ray Charles or experienced the music that made this remarkable man a real legend. Sadly, Ray Charles passed away at 11:35 am [US time] on the 10th of June 2004 at his home in Beverly Hills, California. Thankfully the legacy of this genius lives on in his music. Born Ray Charles Robinson in Albany, Georgia on the 23rd of September 1930 life wasn't easy. He admits the family was poor, very poor and life was a struggle. Ray witnessed his brothers drowning at the age of five and by the age of seven had lost his sight. Fortunately for everyone who would later know Ray Charles through his music, he had begun piano lessons at the early age of three. His mother was determined to ensure his independence and taught him how to get around. At seven years of age, Ray's mother sent him from Greenville to the St Augustine School for the Deaf and Blind, some 160 miles away. Here he would learn classical piano and the clarinet. He also learnt how to read and write music in Braille. By the age of 15 both Ray's parents had passed away, so Ray left St Augustine's and started playing in bands in Florida. It was a move to Seattle that would start to shape his career. Here he was spotted in a talent quest and offered work at the Elks Club. Joining forces with two other musicians he formed the McSon Trio which would move to Los Angeles and record the song he wrote, "Confession Blues". Their recording "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand" brought attention to the trio. In 1953 Ray worked with Guitar Slim playing piano on his recording, "The Things That I Used to Do". It is recognised as his first commercial success. In 1959 Ray got the big break. His record "What'd I Say" made it into the USA Top 10 which led to his appearance at Carnegie Hall, New York and a contract with ABC-Paramount Records. Rays music had crossed the colour barrier. Now both coloured and white folks would experience the genius within. In 1960 he released "Georgia On My Mind". It made it all the way to Number One and would win two Grammy Awards. 1961, the record "Hit The Road Jack", took Ray Charles to Number One again. In 1962 he took Number One again with "I Can't Stop Loving You". Ray's career was a glorious one. Thirty five hit records including three Number Ones and 12 Grammy awards. He battled and defeated a twenty year drug addiction, fathered twelve children and became a household name around the world. In a 1983 interview with the Washington Post Ray is quoted as saying, "Music's been around a long time, and there's going to be music long after Ray Charles is dead. I just want to make my mark, leave something musically good behind. If it's a big record, that's the frosting on the cake, but music's the main meal." Once when asked his music he replied, "Music was one of my parts; like my blood. It was a necessity for me, like food or water," and "I was born with music inside me. That's the only explanation I know of." "Ray Charles’ life was an absolutely fantastic journey. In this film I wanted to present the complexity of this American genius, warts and all. Ray had immense courage and brilliance, but his life also contained horrible tragedy and elusive demons. With Ray we have tried to show the evolution of an artist through an incredible period of cultural change," says Director Taylor Hackford.
"I hope people see through this film that Ray Charles is so much more than a musician of the past. He influenced a vibrant, cultural revolution in America that is still going on today." Hackford and his producing partner Stuart Benjamin, spent the 15 years [1987-2002] developing this story with Ray Charles. Like many of his era, Hackford remembers hearing Charles in the '50's singing "I’ve Got a Woman” for the first time and immediately being hooked by the soulful sound. "From the minute I first heard Ray Charles sing, I knew there was an extraordinary fire there," he says, "and I followed his career from then on." Hackford says that, "To really understand Ray Charles, the music is important, but there is so much more to the man. When I first heard the stories of his life, I thought, 'My God, I never had any idea.' I did not realize how he came up, how he went blind, how he travelled on a Greyhound bus from Northern Florida to Seattle, how he got off that bus as a blind man on his own, experienced discrimination, addiction and sorrow, and yet Ray found his way to become an incomparable artist, an incredible businessman and an American icon. I thought, This man’s story must be told." So what was the man, Ray Charles really like? Director Taylor Hackford remembers their first meeting in 1987 and elaborates on the man he got to know so well. "He was a very gracious man yet also very tough," Hackford recalls. "He was one of the smartest people I’ve ever met and he was also very, very candid. Of course, he was not an easy person, but nobody that accomplished is easy. Having overcome the monumental obstacles he’d faced in his life, Ray exuded a confidence that can only come from being a self-made man. He was also a perfectionist who demanded total concentration and dedication from others. And it was impossible not to be inspired by him." Thankfully, Ray Charles had an opportunity to express what he thought of the production only a few months before he passed away. "I can see that Taylor’s done his homework. He’s got my life down pretty good," Charles said. "I would like for the people to understand the trials and tribulations that I’ve gone through from when I was a little kid up until I really got into my career and all the different things that happened to me over the years. I mean, I’ve had some wonderful things to happen to me, but yet I’ve had some pretty dramatic things to happen to me, too. I would like for people to know that you can recover from a lot of adversity that you might have in your life if you keep pressing on, if you still feel you know where you want to go. In other words, you don’t give up just because you get knocked down a few times." It's a glorious story and a glorious tribute to a remarkable man. Producer Stuart Benjamin sums it up this way; "We had made the Ritchie Valens story, La Bamba, which told the story of this young Latino kid who came from nothing and rose to stardom, if only for that brief moment. Ray’s story transcends musical periods and generations, it’s the quintessential American success story. Ultimately, what got it made was our strong belief in the project. All the stars eventually came together at the right place and the right time."
Crew Bytes
"RAY" was .......
directed by Taylor Hackford ["An Officer and a Gentleman", "Bound by Honor", "The Devil's Advocate" and "Proof Of Life"]; screenplay by James L White ["Ray"]; story by James L White ["Ray"] and Taylor Hackford ["Ray"]; costume design by Sharen Davis ["Devil in a Blue Dress", "Money Talks", "Rush Hour", "High Crimes" and "Antwone Fisher"]; production design by Stephen Altman ["The Player", "Short Cuts", "Grosse Pointe Blank" and "Gosford Park"]; edited by Paul Hirsch ["Star Wars", "King of the Gypsies", "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", "Mission: Impossible", "Mighty Joe Young" and "Lake Placid"]; cinematograhpy by Pawel Edelman ["Happy Happy New York", "Edges of the Lord" and "The Pianist"]; original music by Craig Armstrong ["Cruel Intentions", "The Bone Collector", "The Magdalene Sisters", "Love Actually" and "The Clearing"] and Ray Charles ["Bound", "Bye Bye, Love", "The Hurricane" and "Showtime"]; produced by Howard Baldwin ["The Patriot", "Mystery, Alaska", "Swimming Upstream" and "Danny Deckchair"], Karen Elise Baldwin ["Sudden Death", "Resurrection", "Joshua" and "Swimming Upstream"]. Stuart Benjamin ["The Long Walk Home", "Sweet Talker", "La Bamba" and "Defenseless"] and Taylor Hackford ["La Bamba", "Sweet Talker", "Bound by Honor" and "When We Were Kings"].
Casting About
"RAY" stars .......
Jamie Foxx ["Date from Hell", "Any Given Sunday", "Ali" and "Collateral"]; Kerry Washington ["Bad Company", "The United States of Leland", "The Human Stain" and "Against the Ropes"]; Regina King ["Jerry Maguire", "Mighty Joe Young", "Daddy Day Care", "Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde" and "A Cinderella Story"]; Clifton Powell ["Rush Hour", "Next Friday", "The Brothers" and "Friday After Next"]; Harry Lennix ["Clockers", "Collateral Damage", "The Matrix Reloaded" and "Barbershop 2: Back in Business"]; Rick Gomez ["Mercy", "Three to Tango", "Shark In A Bottle" and "Last Man Running"]; Aunjanue Ellis ["Girls Town", "Men of Honor", "Lovely & Amazing" and "Undercover Brother"]; Mike Pniewski ["Beverly Hills Cop", "Spaceballs", "Life Stinks", "Remember the Titans" and "Runaway Jury"] and Larenz Tate ["Dead Presidents", "The Postman", "Biker Boyz" and "A Man Apart"] as Quincy Jones.
What It's All About
"Taylor Hackford's biography of Ray Charles is a potent and invigorating portrait of genius, thanks to Jamie Foxx's performance and to the music of Ray Charles himself." ...... A O Scott THE NEW YORK TIMES
"Ray" takes us through the story of one mans trials and tribulations from childhood blindness, the struggling musician, recording contracts, marriage, affairs and his battle to overcome drug addiction. This inspirational story takes us from those poverty stricken days of the Great Depression, the death of Ray's younger brother, the onset of his blindness and his mother Aretha's dedication to make Ray Charles Robinson an independent person, relying on his instinct, hearing and memory to get around. There's the racial discrimination, the ripp-offs, record deals, the jealousy and infighting, the women and above all, the music that made the man who would later receive a 'Lifetime Achievement Award' at the Grammy Awards. Through this biopic "Ray" the legend lives on.
The Verdict
"Jamie Foxx is superb in the adult role of legendary african-american musician Ray Charles. The resemblance is uncanny while the music brings back fond memories of a man much loved around the world. Its almost as if Ray Charles himself was performing" for us on the big screen. While Ray Charles was a music genius, Jamie Foxx, as he did in "Collateral", shows us the genius within. And let's not forget young Eric O'Neal Jr and Tequan Richmond who play the very young Charles so well. A rare film. A rare performance. An exceptional story about a most remarkable man who overcame blindness, his colour and drugs on the road to success. Highly recommended."
The Cast
Jamie Foxx
Kerry Washington
Regina King
Clifton Powell
Harry Lennix
Bokeem Woodbine
Aunjanue Ellis
Sharon Warren
C J Sanders
Curtis Armstrong
Richard Schiff
Larenz Tate
Terrence Dashon Howard
David Krumholtz
Wendell Pierce
Chris Thomas King
Thomas Jefferson Byrd
Rick Gomez
Denise Dowse
Warwick Davis
Patrick Bauchau
Robert Wisdom
Kurt Fuller
k Kimberly Ardison
Renee Wilson
Willie Metcalf
Mike Pniewski
Terrone Bell
Richard A Smith
Gary Grubbs
Carol Sutton
Robert 'Bob' Harris
Tom Clark
Vernel Bagneris
Fahnlohnee Harris
Michael Travis Stone
Eric O'Neal Jr
Tequan Richmond
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Ray Charles
Della Bea Robinson
Margie Hendricks
Jeff Brown
Joe Adams
Fathead Newman
Mary Ann Fisher
Aretha Robinson
Young Ray Robinson
Ahmet Ertegun
Jerry Wexler
Quincy Jones
Gossie McKee
Milt Shaw
Wilbur Brassfield
Lowell Fulsom
Jimmy
Tom Dowd
Marlene
Oberon
Dr Hacker
Jack Lauderdale
Sam Clark
Ethel McRae
Pat Lyle
Mr Pitt
Bus Driver
Young George Robinson
Til
Billy Ray
Eula
Jesse Stone
Alan Freed
Dancin' Al
Trudy Daniels
Robert
Ray Charles Jr [5-6 yoa]
Ray Charles Jr [9-10 yoa]
The Crew
Directed by Taylor Hackford
Story by Taylor Hackford and James L White
Screenplay by James L White
Produced by Howard Baldwin/Karen Elise Baldwin/Stuart Benjamin/Taylor Hackford
Original Music by Craig Armstrong & Ray Charles
Non-Original Music by Ludwig van Beethoven
Cinematography by Pawel Edelman
Film Editing by Paul Hirsch
Casting by Nancy Klopper
Production Design by Stephen Altman
Art Direction by Scott Plauche
Set Decoration by Maria Nay
Costume Design by Sharen Davis
Run Time 152 minutes
Rated M15+ [AUST]
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