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Mahogany

Mahogany (1975)

October. 08,1975
|
6.1
|
PG
| Drama Romance

Tracy, an aspiring designer from the slums of Chicago puts herself through fashion school in the hopes of becoming one of the world's top designers. Her ambition leads her to Rome spurring a choice between the man she loves or her newfound success.

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Smartorhypo
1975/10/08

Highly Overrated But Still Good

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BeSummers
1975/10/09

Funny, strange, confrontational and subversive, this is one of the most interesting experiences you'll have at the cinema this year.

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Numerootno
1975/10/10

A story that's too fascinating to pass by...

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Dirtylogy
1975/10/11

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

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padawanmovies
1975/10/12

Being a fan of The Supreme's I heard some of Diana Ross's music on their greatest hits compilations so I'm familiar with Mahogany's theme: "Do you know where you're going to". So I figured I'd watch the movie, especially considering how good Ross was in Lady sings the Blues, that must have jus been a one time thing. Mahogany is NOT GOOD AT ALL. Anthony Perkins' (bit of a hottie in this) and Ross's chemistry is jus weird, frankly the chemistry of EVERYONE was bad: Ross & Williams, Williams & Perkins, EVERYONE. *spoilers ahead* As a fan of 70s fashion, I LOVED THE costumes in this: the rainbow dress during her 1st fashion shoot, the white ensemble with the green & orange hair accessories and necklace, and the beige outfit with the big hat she wore in front of the Italian modeling agency were some of my stand out FAVES. Some of my least favorite parts include: 1)Diana's limited skill set 2)all Ross's parts with Williams, they had soo much chemistry in LSTB but it was Beyond wooden in this. Their banter in the unemployment office, the scene where she tricks him with milk (she thought it was uproarious, it really wasn't), the date scene, their entire relationship: we're supposed to believe they're in love, they hardly knew anything about each other 3) scene btwn Williams & Perkins battling with the gun. One of the funniest things I've ever seen, sad bc it shouldn't have been so. I actually loved this scene but it still Truly Sucked 4) movie as a whole was just very flat and wasn't strong enough to warrant consumer $$. However I must say I laughed sooo hard during Perkins' beginning fashion shoot when he told the brunette model "It looks too horny" for some reason that Cracked me up... And the car crash scene has to be seen to b believed HaHa

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Uriah43
1975/10/13

"Tracy Chambers" (Diana Ross) lives in the south side of Chicago and works as a secretary at a large department store during the day and attends a fashion school at night in the hope of one day being a fashion designer. While commuting one day she meets a young man named "Brian Walker" (Billy Dee Williams) who dreams of empowering the impoverished people in the area to attain a life of dignity. Both of them soon become attracted to one another and Tracy agrees to help Brian in his run for local councilman. However, things change when Tracy meets a famous photographer named "Sean McAvoy" (Anthony Perkins) who entices her to Rome to become a fashion model which could greatly help her in her initial dream of becoming a fashion designer. Although she is somewhat sad about leaving Brian when he needs her the most, she places her ambition ahead of everything else and accepts Sean's offer. What she doesn't realize is the price she will eventually have to pay for her chance at success in that particular industry. Now rather than reveal any more I will just say that this film contained some decent drama here and there and Diana Ross performed in an adequate manner in the starring role. However, I honestly didn't feel any real chemistry between her character and that of Billy Dee Williams—or any of the other male characters for that matter. Likewise, I also thought that the ending was a bit too corny and predictable. That being said, while I don't consider this to be a great film by any means, I also didn't think it was necessarily that bad either and I have rated it accordingly. Average.

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Poseidon-3
1975/10/14

A camp classic for all time, practically from the moment it hit theaters, this showcase for the previously Oscar-nominated Miss Ross provides continual entertainment of one sort or another throughout its running time. Existing in the slums of Chicago, but with an endless desire to break out, Ross attends design school while making ends meet as the secretary to a stuffy department store manager. (As in the old Joan Crawford films featuring shop girls rising from rags to riches - and from which this clearly draws inspiration - "poor" Ross is always dressed to the hilt and her spotless apartment contains new furniture.) When Ross meets cute with handsome activist Williams, she is tempted to toss aside her dreams and aid him in his civil efforts. However, she can't reconcile tossing her dreams away and proceeds to move to Rome, under the guidance of top fashion photographer Perkins. She becomes a major model, using the title moniker as her name, but all the while hoping she can segue into designing. Once this finally occurs (something that is revealed in the first scene, thus undercutting any suspense about that!), she questions whether it was all worth the trouble and if she let love slip away from her in the bargain. Rarely does a film project come along that is so blatantly geared towards showcasing its star that it puts that aspect ahead of virtually everything else. Ross gets to do it all here from facing a glass ceiling in the rag trade to modeling a plethora of fancy gowns to enjoying romantic moments with Williams to snarling at her staff of seamstresses. It's a vanity project to end them all and she is captivating to behold during most of it. She is credited with having designed all the costumes, though there is no way she could have possibly had the time or talent to do ALL of them. Her face is studied in close-up during several montages, all underscored by variations on the justifiably famous love theme. Lee Holdridge does an extraordinary job of weaving the achingly beautiful melody throughout the film. Williams is charismatic and shares significant chemistry with Ross. Their rapport with each other goes a long way in overcoming some trite and, at times, rancid dialogue. Their final scene together is a winner, even if it likely leaves a bad taste in the mouth of anyone who believes in sexual equality. Perkins, overflowing with tics and creepiness, is memorably demented. Others in the cast include Aumont as a wealthy benefactor (in a sequence that recalls another warhorse, "Madame X'), Richards as Ross's kindly seamstress aunt, Mell as a fashion house fixture and friend and Foch as the haughty, old-guard store manager. In a very brief scene, Vilanch appears as a designer from whom Ross is seeking a job. An attempt was made to make a glamorous love story and in that simple way it delivers. There is even filming in actual Rome. It's in the social commentary and believability that the story falters (not to mention motivation from a few of the characters.) Nonetheless, the never-ending parade of hooty fashions, the self-confident persona of Miss Ross and the eye-popping locales should keep most fans of "the woman's picture" fully entertained.

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Brian Washington
1975/10/15

This film is another vanity piece for the ultimate diva Diana Ross. This film is also a classic example of Berry Gordy's failed attempts to make Motown more than what it was, and that was one of the most influetial record companies in history. Gordy even went as far as to direct this film with mixed results. This is nothing but pure melodrama and Diana Ross overracts throughout the whole film. Only Billy Dee Williams and Jean-Pierre Aumont manage to do credible performances as the two men who love Ross' character and Anthony Perkins is at his creepy best as the psychotic photographer. Unfortunately, Diana Ross is wasted in this role, which tends to prove that she had only one good performance in her and, unfortunately, it was in her debut, Lady Sings the Blues.

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