Introducing Dorothy Dandridge
by Martha Coolidge
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Brent Spiner, Halle Berry, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Loretta Devine, Obba BabatundéDirector: Martha Coolidge
Brand: HBO HOME VIDEO
Producer: Halle Berry
Producer: Joshua D. Maurer
Producer: Larry Y. Albucher
Producer: Moctesuma Esparza
Writer: Earl Mills
Writer: Scott Abbott
Writer: Shonda Rhimes
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; Spanish (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono; French (Dubbed); Spanish (Dubbed), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 120 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2000-02-08
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Hbo Home Video
Movie Reviews of Introducing Dorothy Dandridge
Movie Review: The portrait of a lady--sensitive, realistic and engaging
Summary: 5 Stars
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge tells the story of how Dorothy Dandridge rose to fame despite racism against African Americans in 1950s America. Amazon correctly notes that the film doesn't shy away from the uglier realities that Dandridge had to endure. We see Dorothy having to use a cup to urinate in instead of using the bathroom that was only for whites; and Dorothy watches as people scour the pool at The New Frontier Hotel in Vegas after she merely splashed her foot in the water. We also get insight into how Dorothy was pushed around by Hollywood executives who wanted her to play comparatively small parts like the role of Tuptim in The King and I after starring in Carmen Jones.
Halle Berry portrays Dorothy Dandridge with a sensitivity that you can easily appreciate. The victimization Dandridge suffers while living with her mother and her mother's apparent girlfriend is very starkly portrayed without any attempt to water it down; and you find yourself empathizing with her character Dorothy pretty quickly after the movie starts. Halle Berry practically throws herself into the starring role of Dorothy with passion and energy that would make Dorothy proud and grateful if she were still with us today to view this movie. Berry's portrayal of Dorothy's pain and deep angst when she must confront the fact that her only daughter with Harold Nicholas, her first husband, is profoundly brain damaged convinces you that Berry feels everything Dorothy experienced when Dorothy herself had to take the bad news. We see Halle Berry acting convincingly throughout the rest of the picture, too--overjoyed with her love affair with Otto Preminger, crushed when he leaves her twisting in the wind. We see Halle Berry showing us both sides of Dorothy Dandridge--the fiery, brave and amorous side and the vulnerable side of her as well.
The supporting cast turns in marvelous performances also. Look for Obba Babatunde to play the role of Harold Nicholas, Dandridge's first husband who cannot be the family man she truly wants him to be although he tries; and Klaus Maria Brandauer is well cast at director Otto Preminger. Brandauer portrays Preminger as a cold, calculating man who wants what he wants when he wants it--and then throws Dandridge's love for him away as soon as he no longer wants it anymore. In addition, Brent Spiner does a great job playing the role of the faithful, loyal manager who tries to guide and protect Dandridge during her tumultuous career and personal ups and downs.
The cinematography reflects great judgment; the camera moves at all the right angles to capture the action and mood of every scene. The choreography works well, especially in crowd scenes including Dandridge's first appearance at Ciro's nightclub. In addition, the scenes that display domestic violence reflect a great deal of forethought and good judgment to make the action have just the right effect on the viewer. Excellent!
The DVD comes with few extras: I disliked the advertisement "extra" which basically just tries to get you to buy more DVDs. The brief biographies of the real life cast members were good but I would have appreciated some commentary by director Martha Coolidge or the cast members.
Introducing Dorothy Dandridge does more than merely accomplish the goal of telling us the story of Dorothy's roller coaster career and personal life. This is an insightful portrait of a lady whose life story is full of sad and poignant moments interspersed with professional triumphs and happiness. Do yourself a favor and get this movie on DVD--you won't be disappointed in the slightest.
Summary of Introducing Dorothy Dandridge
An acclaimed stage performer, Dorothy struggled with the challenge of her color in Hollywood. She beat out many more famous rivals for the role of ' 'Carmen Jones' ', and became the first black woman ever nominated for a Best Actress Academy Award (R). Seductive and easily seduced, she was born to be a star. Here was a woman who wouldn't wait in the wings.Dorothy Dandridge was a Hollywood trailblazer. A confident sex symbol in the 1950s, she was the first black woman ever nominated for a Best Actress Oscar, but the electrifying stage chanteuse and dancer was forbidden to even enter the nightclubs and show rooms she performed in except from the stage. As portrayed by Halle Berry, who shepherded Dandridge's story to the screen, Dandridge is a sure, insistent star who battled racist studios and Jim Crow laws to maintain her dignity in public while stumbling through a private life marked by bad relationships and abusive lovers. Berry gives her best performance to date, brimming with ambition and moxie offstage, charming audiences with the slinky, sure moves of a nightclub veteran onstage, and convincingly "becoming" Dandridge in dramatic re-creations from Carmen Jones and Porgy and Bess. Brent Spiner (Star Trek: The Next Generation) is sweet and sympathetic as her supportive, lovesick manager, and Klaus Maria Brandauer is, in Dandridge's words, a "big old bulldog" as director Otto Preminger. Director Martha Coolidge balances private troubles with professional milestones and setbacks and pulls no punches showing the institutional racism of late 1950s Las Vegas or the brutality of a vicious alcoholic husband. Originally made for HBO, this drama lacks the big-budget spectacle of traditional Hollywood biographies but offers in its place sharp writing, intelligent direction, and strong, sensitive performances. --Sean Axmaker
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