Review by John P. Harvey and Michele E. Hawkins.
The Color Purple is a magnificent tale of discovery: discovery of staunchness buried within gentleness and uncertainty, and of moral weakness disguised as aggressive virility. And with themes of unentitled entitlement, brutal self-centredness, disregard for another’s humanity, racism, incest, child sexual abuse, grief, and poverty, it could have been as tough to watch as the original Color Purple. Yet this is also a story of love, steadfastness, kindness, and unbreakable spirits, and it depicts its tougher aspects with a light hand. The effect is to render the overall cinema experience a richly rewarding one: moving, without excessive sentimentality; well paced, without excessive confusion; grand, but not excessively lengthy.
The two men who, at the tale’s opening, loom largest in the lives of young sisters Celie (Phylicia Pearl Mpasi in her debut role as the young Celie; Fantasia Barrino as the older Celie) and Nettie (singer Halle Bailey as the young Nettie, and Ciara as the older Nettie) are their father, Alfonso (Deon Cole), and Mister (Colman Domingo). Both men are abusive, controlling rapists who bring only misery and enslavement to Celie. But there are good men too – notably, Mister’s son, Harpo (Corey Hawkins), whose moral compass eventually gives him the strength to confront the lifestyle and self-serving values that his father has attempted to inculcate into his sons.
The tale focuses chiefly on Celie’s inner emancipation from helpless victim to stalwart as she comes to grips with using female solidarity to stand up for herself. The women who grace Celie’s life are her beloved but now deceased mother (Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor); her loving and fun-loving sister Nettie; the spectacularly vibrant Shug Avery (Taraji P. Henson); and the indomitable Sofia (Danielle Brooks). These women, and especially Shug Avery, become her bedrock and eventually the key to her freedom.
At close to 2 1/2 hours, The Color Purple doesn’t seem overly long. It’s a tale of almost epic proportions that offers an entertaining variety in its presentation, including many moving songs, all arranged with finesse and sung beautifully by actors with solid music credentials; many great dance numbers; flawless acting; and frequently memorable cinematography that, without calling attention to itself, highlights the value of creative selection of point of view.