Idlewild (2006)

Nice effects though.

Instant Favorite.

Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

I saw Idlewild again last night .This is simply a top-notch production with dazzling performances, excellent production standards and very imaginative cinematography.The production numbers are quite simply unstoppable and the blending of the music of the period with the sensibilities of today works beautifully. Obvious care was taken to recreate the look and feel of the period and some of the shots and film sequences, most notably a love scene and a death scene were simply mesmerizing. Music numbers very definitely gave you a sleek music video sensibility coupled with festive dance moves in stop-action/clever editing beautifully enhancing this comedic drama that deftly approached racism, organized crime, father-son issues, love issues, a look at black life in a very difficult time resulting in poignant, entertaining film.I indeed admit that the script itself could have been more compelling but there is no denying the power of Andre Benjamin in this production. His performance is measured, believable, poised, and poignant. He has a more than promising future in films. He along with a top-notch cast including Ving Rhames, Terrence Howard, Macy Gray and Patti LaBelle give standout performances I can easily look at over and probably over again.This is an excellent and a most worthy representation of another dimension/time in African-American culture and a MUST for your collection if you want quality productions of African-American life.I highly recommend!

This film is simply outrageously bad. It's major failing point; it knows not what it is. Is it a syrupy gangster movie or a modern day musical experiment in the vein of Moulin Rouge? Songs are thrown in rather haphazardly, and only once does a song advance the plot at all. In the meantime, the story drags and is essentially tired and uninteresting. The acting is not over the top, but it's not subtle either, but just bad. Like watching a high school production but without any of the fun of knowing the people on the stage.On the musical side of things, despite the musical group Outkast in charge of the music, the duo never did perform a song together. Perhaps this is the major failing of the story. It lacked intricacy. The love story was simple, the bootlegging problems were simple, the dynamics between characters was like watching a bunch of strangers thrown together for the first time. Everything going on was pretty obvious to the viewer, but then the movie had to explain it extremely slowly.I really can't think of a single thing I enjoyed about this movie. I wish the duo would try again sometime. I think someone had a good idea, but most ideas need to be developed.

Okay, this movie could have been better in a lot of ways. For one, the acting wasn't great, but then again, it was better than Prince in every movie he was in. For instance, as bad a movie as "Purple Rain" was in regards to acting, it still won Oscars for its music.With that said, although the movie wasn't great acting wise on Outkast's part or story wise, the musical numbers were outstanding, the supporting cast shined and was nothing to be scoffed at, and the visual effects were among the best I've seen in 2006.I thought the marketing for this movie failed in a lot of ways. For one, it's theatrical release was very limited. I live in Maine, and the film wasn't even released anywhere up here. Second, I found it outrageous that the soundtrack, which was very entertaining, sold less than Danity Kane's debut album. And even though the Grammys don't usually pay attention to commercial success, and even awarded Outkast the Best Album award four years ago, they really overlooked the soundtrack for this album, which wasn't even nominated. I also thought "Idlewild Blue" by Andre 3000 should have at least been nominated for Best Original Song at this year's Oscars.This movie was grossly underrated. It had some flaws, but it's strengths were undeniable. I just hate that it suffered the same fate as "Under The Cherry Moon", "The Cotton Club", and "Harlem Nights", movies that were set in the same time period and had all star casts, but didn't make a splash on the big screen. Anyway, I say Outkast was under rug swept for this movie and album, and they definitely deserved better.

Does anyone realize that there is a place in Michiga called "Idlewild"? It can still be found just off of highway 10 which runs from east to west connecting Bay City to Ludington. For many years it was considered a ghost town, rumor has it that the mayor of Detroit is trying to revive it as resort community again. In it's day it was a famous resort for middle and upper class blacks before World War 2? Many well known blues and jazz musicians were hired to perform there for the entertainment of the vacationers. I find it disappointing that the movie is set in the South when it has been given "Idlewild" as a title. It's a shame that the name of a true historical place with all that history attached to it is being inaccurately portrayed.