It was released on October 29, 2004, by Universal Pictures. It received generally positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Foxx's performance. It was also a commercial success, grossing $124.7 million worldwide against a production budget of $40 million.
Charles had planned to attend a screening of the completed film but died of liver disease in June 2004, four months prior to the premiere.[3]
Plot
Ray Charles Robinson is raised in poverty in Florida by his mother, Aretha. Learning to play piano at an early age, Ray is haunted by the accidental death of his younger brother George, who drowns in their mother's washbasin. Ray loses his vision by age seven and becomes completely blind. Aretha teaches him to be independent, eventually sending him to a school for the deaf and blind.
In 1946, Ray joins a white country band and wears sunglasses to hide his damaged eyes. Two years later, he travels to Seattle and joins a nightclub band, though the club's owner demands sexual favors and controls his money and career. After discovering he is being exploited, Ray signs his own record deal and leaves the band. Touring on the Chitlin' Circuit as "Ray Charles", he is introduced to heroin.
A pregnant Della finds Ray’s drug kit and confronts him. They reconcile after the birth of their first child, but Ray begins an affair with singer Mary Anne Fisher. In 1956, as Ray's popularity grows, he hires a trio to become "The Raelettes" and immediately falls for lead singer Margie Hendrix. They begin their own affair, and a jealous Mary Anne leaves.
A few years later, when Ray's band finishes a set early and the club’s owner demands they play the remaining time, Ray performs "What'd I Say" on the spot. His popularity rises through the 1950s and he moves his family to Los Angeles but continues to use heroin, straining his relationships with Della and Margie. In 1960, he signs a better contract with ABC Records, negotiating to own his master tapes.
Ray continues to experiment with his music, recording such hits as "Georgia on My Mind". Margie reveals she is pregnant, and cuts off their affair when Ray demands she end the pregnancy. He writes "Hit the Road Jack" with a solo by Margie, who uses her newfound recognition to embark on a solo career, while Ray struggles with his addiction.
In 1961, Ray encounters civil rights protestors outside his concert in Augusta, Georgia. Deciding not to play at the segregated venue, he cancels the concert and is banned from playing in Georgia. After he allows black and white audience members to dance together onstage during a concert in Indianapolis, his hotel room is raided by police. His arrest for heroin possession is made public, to Della’s dismay, but his record label has the charges dismissed.
In St. Louis, Ray performs the country-influenced "I Can't Stop Loving You" and is impressed by announcer Joe Adams, who joins his tour. Ray moves his family to Beverly Hills, and learns that Margie has died of an overdose. Joe alienates Ray’s band and his longtime friend and manager Jeff Brown, whom Ray fires, for stealing.
In 1965, Ray returns from a concert in Montreal and is again arrested for heroin possession. Dismissing his excuses, Della pleads with him to overcome his habit, and he is sentenced to drug rehabilitation. Suffering vivid nightmares during withdrawal, Ray learns to play chess with Dr. Hacker and Hacker explains to him that his lawyer's arguments with the judge agreed to probation in Boston under the condition that he completes his drug rehab problem and agrees to take periodic drug tests, Ray has a vision of George and their mother, who, while praising the fact he became a success, chastises him for letting his addictions cripple him, with George telling Ray that his death was not his fault.
By 1979, Ray has permanently quit heroin and receives an official apology from the state of Georgia, which names "Georgia On My Mind" the official state song. Ray goes on to have a long and successful career as a world-famous entertainer until his death in 2004.
The film's production was entirely financed by Philip Anschutz, through his Bristol Bay Productions company.[4][5] Taylor Hackford said that it took 15 years to make the film;[2] or more specifically, as he later clarified in the liner notes of the soundtrack album, this is how long it took him to secure the financing.[6] It was made on a budget of $40 million.
Charles was given a Braille copy of the film's original script; he objected only to a scene showing him taking up piano grudgingly, and a scene implying that Charles had shown mistress and lead "Raelette" Margie Hendricks how to shoot heroin.[3]
Hackford originally had the idea of using a stunt double to make it look like Foxx was playing the piano but was shocked to find out that he went to college on a classical piano scholarship.[7] Foxx does not sing as Charles with exception to cover versions Charles performs in his earlier years.[2]Kanye West and Ludacris have since made songs with Foxx singing as Charles in their songs "Gold Digger" and "Georgia", respectively. Instead of studying Ray Charles in person, Foxx watched old video footage of him to authentically recreate the vibe of Ray Charles when he was a lot younger. Foxx also shot the majority of the film blind as he used prosthetics to cover his eyes.[8]
Hackford stated while Anschutz said the film would be made, he demanded that it be PG-13, and this caused him to walk away from the film five times.[9] Because Charles and Ahmet Ertegun asked him to make the movie, he agreed to do the film as a PG-13 rating. The film was rated PG-13 for "depiction of drug addiction, sexuality and some thematic elements".
Hackford stated that no studio was interested in backing the movie.[2] After it was shot independently, Universal Pictures stepped in to distribute it.[9] Part of the reason Universal Pictures released it was because one of its executives used to hitchhike to Ray Charles concerts.
Ray was released in theaters on October 29, 2004. The film went on to become a box-office hit, earning $75 million in the U.S. with an additional $50 million internationally, bringing its worldwide gross to $125 million.[1]
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on 206 reviews, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "An engrossing and energetic portrait of a great musician's achievements and foibles, Ray is anchored by Jamie Foxx's stunning performance as Ray Charles."[11] On Metacritic the film has a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[12] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film a rare "A+" grade.[13]
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote: "The movie would be worth seeing simply for the sound of the music and the sight of Jamie Foxx performing it. That it looks deeper and gives us a sense of the man himself is what makes it special." Ebert gave it a full 4 out of 4 stars.[14]Richard Corliss of Time praised the cast, saying "If there were an Oscar for ensemble acting, Ray would win in a stroll."[15] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone wrote: "Jamie Foxx gets so far inside the man and his music that he and Ray Charles seem to breathe as one."[16]
According to music critic Robert Christgau, "Foxx does the impossible—radiates something approaching the charisma of the artist he's portraying... that's the only time an actor has ever brought a pop icon fully to life on-screen."[17]
The film's credits state that Ray is based on true events, but includes some characters, names, locations, and events which have been changed and others which have been "fictionalized for dramatization purposes." Examples of the fictionalized scenes include:
The film's portrayal of Charles' brother George's death in 1935 shows him drowning in a metal tub after Ray does not attempt to rescue him because he assumes he is just playing; Ray's mother then discovers George drowning when calling the boys in for dinner. Though George did drown in a metal tub, Ray did try to pull him out, but was unable to do so due to George's large body weight;[18] Ray then ran inside to tell his mother what happened.[18]
Throughout the film, it is suggested that Ray's depression and heroin addiction were fueled by nervous breakdowns he had over the deaths of both George and his mother, as well as his blindness. In reality, the death of his mother did give him a nervous breakdown and was thought to be a leading cause of his depression,[19] but the death of George and his blindness did not lead to nervous breakdowns.[19]
It is true that Charles kicked his heroin addiction after undergoing treatment in a psychiatric hospital during 1965, as stated towards the end of the film, but it is not mentioned that he would often use gin and marijuana as substitutes for heroin throughout much of the remaining years of his life.[19][20]
In the scene in which "What'd I Say" is being played, Charles is depicted as playing a Fender Rhodes electric piano, but in reality, he used a Wurlitzer electric piano on the original recording and began using it on tour in 1956, because he did not trust the tuning and quality of the pianos provided to him at every venue.[21]
In the film, when his backing singer and mistress Margie Hendricks informs Ray she is pregnant with his child, Ray suggests she should have an abortion, out of loyalty to Della; Margie decides to keep the baby and soon leaves Ray to pursue a separate singing career after he refuses to abandon his family, move in with her and welcome the baby into his life. In reality, Hendricks did conceive a child with Charles and abandoned him after he refused to leave Della, but Charles never asked her to have an abortion, and welcomed any child he conceived, whether from Della or any mistress, into his personal life.[20]
In the film Margie leaves the Raelettes in 1961, but in reality she was fired from the group by Ray in 1964 after a heated argument.[22]
In the scene in which Charles is about to enter a segregated music hall in Augusta, Georgia, in 1961, a group of civil rights activists protesting just outside the hall successfully persuade him not to perform; Charles then declares that he will no longer perform in segregated public facilities and in response, the Georgia state legislature passes a resolution banning Charles from ever performing again in the state. In reality, a group of civil rights activists did successfully persuade Charles to reject this invitation, but the advice came in the form of a telegram rather than a street protest;[20] Charles also did make up for the gig later, and was never banned from performing in Georgia and still accepted invitations to perform at segregated public facilities.[20]
In the film, Margie Hendricks dies in 1964. However, in reality she died on July 14, 1973, but, no official cause of death was determined because an autopsy was not performed.[23]
During the final scene in the film, when Charles' version of "Georgia on My Mind" becomes Georgia's state song, Charles is congratulated by his wife Della, and a resolution is also passed to lift the lifetime ban he had received in 1961 after he declared he would no longer perform at segregated public facilities. In reality, by the time "Georgia on My Mind" became Georgia's state song in 1979, Charles and Della had already divorced, so she was not present when Charles performed at the Georgia State Legislature;[20] and since he had never been banned from performing in Georgia in the first place, no such resolution was ever passed.[20]
Notes
↑ Director Taylor Hackford noted this focus on the years 1935–1965 in his DVD commentary for the film; the only exception to this focus is the film's final scene featuring Julian Bond and set in the Georgia State Capitol in 1979, a scene Hackford included at Charles' specific request.[2]
Related Research Articles
Ray Charles Robinson Sr. was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Genius". Among friends and fellow musicians he preferred being called "Brother Ray". Charles was blinded during childhood, possibly due to glaucoma.
John Elroy Sanford, better known by his stage name Redd Foxx, was an American stand-up comedian and actor. Foxx gained success with his raunchy nightclub act before and during the civil rights movement. Known as the "King of the Party Records", he performed on more than 50 records in his lifetime. He portrayed Fred G. Sanford on the television show Sanford and Son and starred in The Redd Foxx Show and The Royal Family, where he played the husband of Della Reese, and grandfather to actor Larenz Tate.
The Raelettes were an American girl group formed in 1958 to provide backing vocals for Ray Charles. They were reformed from the group The Cookies. Between 1966 and 1973, the Raelettes recorded on Tangerine Records as a separate act produced and accompanied by Charles.
Eric Marlon Bishop, known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He received acclaim for his portrayal of Ray Charles in the film Ray (2004), winning the Academy Award, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild Award, and Golden Globe Award for Best Actor. That same year, he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the crime film Collateral.
"What'd I Say" is an American rhythm and blues song by Ray Charles, released in 1959. As a single divided into two parts, it was one of the first soul songs. The composition was improvised one evening late in 1958 when Charles, his orchestra, and backup singers had played their entire set list at a show and still had time left; the response from many audiences was so enthusiastic that Charles announced to his producer that he was going to record it.
Taylor Edwin Hackford is an American film director and former president of the Directors Guild of America. He won the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for Teenage Father (1979). Hackford went on to direct a number of highly regarded feature films, most notably An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) and Ray (2004), the latter of which saw him nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and the Academy Award for Best Picture.
Sharon Warren is an American actress. She played Ray Charles' mother, Aretha Robinson, in the 2004 film Ray.
"Mess Around" is a song written by Ahmet Ertegun, co-founder and then-vice-president of Atlantic Records, under the pseudonym of A. Nugetre, or "Nuggy". It was performed by Ray Charles, and was one of Charles's first hits.
David "Fathead" Newman was an American jazz and rhythm-and-blues saxophonist, who made numerous recordings as a session musician and leader, but is best known for his work as a sideman on seminal 1950s and early 1960s recordings by Ray Charles.
"Night Time Is the Right Time" or "The Right Time" is a rhythm and blues song recorded by American musician Nappy Brown in 1957. It draws on earlier blues songs and has inspired popular versions, including those by Ray Charles, Rufus and Carla, and James Brown, which reached the record charts. Creedence Clearwater Revival recorded a version of the song on their 1969 album, Green River. The Animals also included a version of the song on their debut album "The Animals," released in 1964.
"Georgia" is a single by Southern hip hop duo Field Mob and Atlanta-based rapper Ludacris featuring R&B singer Jamie Foxx, with production by DJ Vudu Spellz. It first appeared on Ludacris Presents: Disturbing tha Peace, a compilation album released by Ludacris' own Disturbing tha Peace record label, showcasing the company's new talent as of 2006. The track was reprised on the Field Mob album Light Poles and Pine Trees released later the same year.
Charles Edward "Cow Cow" Davenport was an American boogie-woogie and piano blues player as well as a vaudeville entertainer. He also played the organ and sang.
Tom Dowd & the Language of Music is a documentary profiling the life and work of music producer/recording engineer Tom Dowd. Historical footage, vintage photographs and interviews with a "who's who" list of musical giants from the worlds of jazz, soul and classic rock provide insight into the life of Dowd, whose creative spirit and passion for innovative technology helped shape the course of modern music. It was a 2005 Grammy Award nominee.
"Drown in My Own Tears", originally credited as "I'll Drown in My Tears", is a song written by Henry Glover. It is best known in the version released as a single in 1956 by Ray Charles on the Atlantic record label.
Stuart Benjamin is an American film producer.
Ahmet Ertegun was a Turkish-American businessman, songwriter, record executive and philanthropist.
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Ellis Hall Jr. known professionally as Ellis Hall is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, actor and composer. He was described as "The Ambassador of Soul" by conductor, Jeff Tyzik. Hall has been blind since the age of 18. Citing Ray Charles as his inspiration, Hall has written over 4000 soul, gospel, blues and pop songs, and has performed with Stevie Wonder, James Taylor, Natalie Cole, Patti LaBelle, Toby Keith, Herbie Hancock, George Benson, Bobby Womack, Sheila E, Maurice White of Earth, Wind and Fire, Tower of Power and Ray Charles. Charles signed Hall to his record label Crossover Records, and mentored him until Charles' death in 2004.
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