Cinepals - WHAT'S LOVE GOT TO DO WITH IT (1993) Movie Reaction & Review! | Angela Bassett | Laurence Fishburne

Episode Date: February 24, 2025

Jaby and Michael watch the Tina Turner biopic What's Love Got To Do With It for the first time! The film chronicles the rise of Tina Turner, her tumultuous marriage to Ike Turner, and her journey to reclaim her life and career through resilience and strength. What's Love Got to Do with It was directed by Brian Gibson (The Josephine Baker Story, Poltergeist II: The Other Side, Still Crazy). The main cast includes Angela Bassett (Black Panther, Malcolm X, How Stella Got Her Groove Back) as Tina Turner, Laurence Fishburne (The Matrix, Boyz n the Hood, Apocalypse Now) as Ike Turner, Vanessa Bell Calloway (Coming to America, Shameless, The Inkwell) as Jackie, Jenifer Lewis (Black-ish, The Preacher’s Wife, Meet the Browns) as Zelma Bullock, and Khandi Alexander (CSI: Miami, Scandal, Treme) as Darlene. Join us on YouTube at https://www.YouTube.com/@Cinepals for the cutdown reaction or becoming a Patron at www.cinejump.com and get access to the uncut reaction for this movie as well as many other movies and shows!   SOCIAL MEDIA ~MICHAEL BOOSE~ Insta: @BooseIsLoose ~CINEPALS~ YouTube: @CinePals Insta: https://instagram.com/TheCinePals Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheCinePals

This is my and Rohan will answer moment. So for some reason, the guy who tallies up, the votes, the comments, and what's been asked for the most, has repeatedly missed what's love got to do with it. And I don't miss it. I see it every time. And I'm like, why isn't this in the list? I see you. It's in my heart's list.

I want to be fully transparent with you guys, because that's just the kind of dude I am. I saw this as a kid. Michael has not seen this. Nope. There are things burned into my skull from this. this film. Oh, God. But I clearly don't remember it all that well. There are some things kids shouldn't see. That's what's in my head from this film. We're in for a bit of a ride, and I'm excited for you. Buckling up. My favorite James Bond song was sung by Tina Turner.

Oh, sweet. Golden Eye. Without further adoing, here we go. We're going to do. Dude, that hit me. Like, because you see everything that leads up to that moment. Yeah. And it connects to the real her, and it's like, dang, like, this is not just a movie. Like, this is an actual person. This actual person, she really went through all that. And, like, and then she landed here.

She fucking won. She made it. Wow. She made it. Damn. Like, she got finally what she deserved, you know? Yeah, yeah. I was doing just fine.

And then they showed the real her. Really tucked on your height strings there, huh? Yeah, man. Anyway, will you speak? I'm not super familiar with the Tina Turner story. You know, I'm familiar with her songs, especially as she's gone on in her solo career and things like that. But I never knew sort of the trials and tribulations that she'd gone through.

Yeah. I don't know what it is. And I love these movies. I love musician biopics. They're just amazing. But why? Why is it that all the greatest performers always have, some skeevy awful terrible person taking advantage of them at first you know it's

like almost universal in these stories and I don't know how much of that is like well specifically writing it for that and giving us like a villain that we need to hate like man there's gotta be somewhere someone out there who got to the top and is doing great with someone who loves and supports them behind them right right like I'm trying to think the best way to convey and respond to what you just said which is like you don't hear about the news stories where crimes didn't happen yeah that's true right and so you're you're hearing the biopics where there's drama infused in it in a very deep way and so naturally it's going to make it look like all of the times that you know

you make it at the top there's got to be a whole bunch of messy drama awful people you know messy stuff yeah yeah so i think that's kind of the byproduct of biopics like this man that that ending kind of messed me up seeing the real her it's just like it connected it and i was so happy for her right it's so moving like seeing her and seeing her perform with such joy knowing what it took to get her there. Yeah. You know, and she still gets to do the thing that she loves. That just took the wind out of me at the end, because she just went through so much, you know, over the course of her career with Ike and just like trying to be strong. And, you know, they, I think that the question is like in the audience's mind or just in people's mind

in general, like, why won't you leave? Like, you of all people, you're Tina Turner. Why wouldn't you leave? Yeah, why wouldn't you leave? And they did an excellent job of illustrating to you perfectly like why she didn't leave. And they even set it straight to your face. She's like, I got left behind by my mom, by my parents when I was a kid. And I cannot do that to my kids. No. And she conveyed that at the same moment that she found her chant that gave her strength,

which connects it right back to the beginning of the film. And so you had two things from the beginning of the movie that came right there, you know, because they showed her. There's so much that they set up at the top. Yeah. You had the chant. You had her as a child who's just like, I love to sing. The music is in my body.

I cannot stop it. And then she, and her parents left. And so then you brought it back right there in that scene in the Hollywood home with her friend, you know, which is like, I can't leave because of my kids. And then she found the chant, all that stuff. And then she has to keep on going and keep on singing. You know, she's got to keep expressing that voice. And there's a certain degree of, like, if you go through all that and, like, that life takes so much away from you,

the fact that she still returned to music after that is crazy because there's a certain degree of, like, I don't ever want to do this again. It's hurt me so much. It's taken so much from me. It's cost me so much. I no longer love it as much as I do. But she still continued to love and thrive performing and being on stage and bringing that music to people that she was able to cut out all of the things that made it toxic to her

and still find happiness within that existence. Like you watched her evolution and like her loss of innocence. And I think the best example of that was her performance after that first performance after she was like, Ike, I don't feel so good. And him being like, what are you talking about? You don't feel so good. We got to pay the band. We got to do all this stuff.

And just like the anguish on her face as she still performed with that same level of joy and magnitude in that performance. Like that right there is incredible because she was able to bring and exist in both worlds. She had that tear coming down her face. Oh my God. The tear goes like straight down her on the. perfect timing just after he kisses her on the cheek yeah the whole time you're just like hoping for her and it's like it's there's this cathartic satisfying feeling watching the film because like i understand this is real life but as a movie it also just makes you feel so good to see her get out of that

situation yeah and it's like she's not just surviving uh uh tv she's skyrocketed afterwards what a phenomenal and inspiring story that she's not just a survivor, she's a winner, you know? Yeah, she was able to focus herself and rise above. That's inspiring. I'm like at a loss of words, honestly. You're so inspired. You're so inspired. But I want to talk about the costuming, just like removing from the emotional aspect,

just to give you a little bit to wind in. Removing from the emotional aspect, the costuming in this was really, really great Because they do cover, because she has such a long-standing career before her solo career takes off. They go through so many eras. Yeah. Right? Like it starts in the 60s and then in the 70s, 80s, and then she really starts kind of taking off just like kind of 80s, 90s. So she covers so many decades of looks.

And it's really exemplified in all of Lawrence Fishburn's costumes. He goes from wearing these like really great three-piece suits with like the matching color overcoat to like, The fro and the leggings and the high boots and like the open chest pants or the open chest shirt and everything like that. They did a really good job of kind of maintaining his character and showing how he tried to keep up with the times every single time. Like with his hair that was very reminiscent of the Beatles in that era when he's like mad about the British invasion. And then, you know, it's all of his outfits are very much on trend. Whereas Angela's were very much expressions of her character. Right, right, right.

who Tina was and they never really ascribed to an era they were just iconic every single time and so I think the clothes kind of it also helps you understand what era they're in yeah it also helps you understand what era you're in but it also understands like she is the four person she is the one

setting the trends and he is just keeping up with her and the trend that they're riding I thought that both of them Angela Bass and Lawrence Fishburne did just they destroyed fabulous performances they did such an amazing job fabulous performance because ike turner he comes in as ike turn and he's got that that charm and

pizzazz to him and and the romantic sort of vibe and energy and you can see his charisma yes and the way he comes in but he's also like this there's this skeevy thing underneath that as an actor you have to like kind of layer that in and he does such a great job of being believable and being real as that person and having watched him so many times in movies and interviews since the matrix yeah and we've watched other stuff with him that's from the pre kind of this era or like prior to this this is by far the most amazing role I've ever seen him in it uh seen him in because I bought him as this villain like this evil fucking guy that I just wanted to see get put under the ground and but you can see like why he's evil you can see the manipulative tactics he does but you can also see that he doesn't

see himself as evil well right right right right right yeah that's that's the big thing is like you know If you play an awful character like this, sometimes you can get too wrapped up in just being awful. What you've got to find, and what I think Lawrence Fishburn does a really good job of, is finding the justification for why you feel you can do these things. And that's what makes him so complex is we know right off the bat, he's skeevy. He's kind of evil. He gives that vibe straight from the club. But we're still drawn in by his charisma. We're still drawn in by his desire to see Tina succeed because he thinks that he's.

he's going to succeed off of her. And he's going to be the recipe for her success. Yeah. And you have also Angela Bassett, who, like you mentioned, like she starts out as this innocent young girl. And then over the course of the film, she really does, like, a full-blown transformation. And I'm, like, mad 30 years late on 2004, yeah, it's been 30 years. Yeah, 30 years. I'm mad 30 years late on this whole Sharon Stone winning basic insecurity.

Okay, so she wasn't actually going up against Sharon. Stone. She was going up against Holly Hunter for the piano, but still, what the hell? That makes no fucking sense. Like, you've got to be kidding. Yeah, right? Like, performance was phenomenal. To me, it's like, anytime Daniel DeLewis goes up, why are you?

There's no other nominations. Yeah, just don't nominate anybody else. It's Daniel DeLuis. Like, anytime he hasn't won, it's just like, are you watching? Like, are you for real? Are you sure about that? Likewise, her ability to just completely be this person, I bought it. I bought all of it. More than anything

else I've ever watched her. And I think she's a phenomenal actress. And every time I watch I'm like, wow, you're great. This is the best. This is like the Orson Wells of performances from me, like from her. Like nothing compares. The end all be all. The end all be all of Asset performances. Yeah, I will always hold this against her. It's like, yeah, that was great. But like, it wasn't what Long got to do with it. Yeah, exactly. It wasn't like Tina Turner. I don't know how it was like if that reference is going to connect at all. Like, because that we mentioned Orson Wells in another, in another video. And I can't remember what reaction that even was. If you're watching religiously,

as you should be, you'll know which one. Yeah, but like, okay, the short of it is Orson Wells did Citizen Kane and for the rest of his life. Got compared to Citizen Kane. It's always compared to Citizen Kane. And it's like, he never, they never let him live that down. It's like, no matter what he did.

It's always like, well, it's not as good as Citizen Kane. And so for me, like, all of her roles, she's always great. But damn, like, the two of them. Like, it makes me mad you can't nominate a movie again the following year. Right, right, right, like follow up. Like, you know, do, does this still hold up

compared to like modern filmmaking and stuff like that. No, for sure. She deserves all of the accolades for this. And I also think the musical performances were her, too. Okay. Listening to it back, because they have the cut to actual Tina Turner. Her voice sounded different. Okay, okay, yeah, yeah.

I think Angela was able to capture the iconic, like, sound and style of Tina Turner's voice. But I think she did a lot of the, and correct me if I'm wrong, But I think she did a lot of the vocals on that, which is a feat in and of itself because you have such an iconic vocalist that matching that and getting within even spitting distance of that is hugely impressive and very, like, just phenomenal to watch. And again, brings her more into that character and more into that phenomenal performance and bringing Tina Turner to life. Yeah, I just decided to look at the director's credits. There is nothing else. He has not made a lot. Yeah, there's nothing else in his IMDB that comes anywhere near this.

Like, this is the movie. Yep. So 11 years after he made this movie, he passed away. But, like, this was, like, the movie. Out of his IMDB, like, this is the only thing to me. The big thing. Yeah, like, wow. But I feel like, even though it didn't win, what's Love Got to Do With It is a film that, like, so many people.

Obviously, you guys have asked us to watch it. Yeah, clearly. So, like, it's obviously stood the test of time, and it's one of those things that is a classic. And for me, watching this many years removed, it's a relief. that I appreciate this film so much because sometimes when you're like, whether it's a friend or an audience asking you to watch something that is like loved,

sometimes it gets scary because if you don't have that same appreciation. Right, you're really hoping that you're going to love it. It's actually as good as everybody else is saying because you don't want to be that guy that's like, that wasn't so good. Yeah. Or just not having the feelings that, you know,

it doesn't resonate with you the same way. Even watching one of the earlier ones we did, the last dragon, it's like, that was a lot of fun. but it's not going to hit us the way it hit the audience when it first came out. It's just, it's impossible. Yeah. So this for me, it's still, it's still hits and it hits hard. It's, I mean, to me, it's timeless in the way it's shot, the way it's presented, and the performances, all of it.

It's so strong. I guess we're not that far removed from it in terms of acting style. No. Like, you know, like sometimes you watch something from the 70s and it's like, wow, that feels like the 70s. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You can like really feel it. Yeah. This feels like just so real and well done that, for me, it's timeless because it feels like this could have been done yesterday.

It's also like actors that we're familiar with. You know, like, we've watched Lawrence Fishburne in a lot. We've watched Angela Bassett in a lot. So it doesn't feel quite as far removed because it's not like the actors our parents grew up with or like our grandparents grew up with. So it's just watching them younger and it's like, oh, I see, I understand why their career has gone on for so long and why I'm so familiar with that. because they brought this to life. Yeah. Beautifully done, man.

Well executed. The director just did such a great job of capturing the era and making me believe it because I forget I'm watching actors. I forget I'm watching Lawrence Fishbert and Angela Bassett. You're in.

Yeah, I'm in. And that's like, that's the mark of good writing, good directing, etc. Everything coming together. And to what you were saying, it's like, it's really sad that you have a guy like Ike Turner who, for all intents and purposes,

like he did have a vision. And he was like spearheading this ship and he was like, oh, hard, hard worker. I guess it was to his detriment in the way that he handled things, right? I mean, he's coked out and whatever and just mistreating people around him. It's like there was many opportunities you could have gone a different direction and you just kept choosing the wrong direction. It's the fatal flaw of a narcissist. They are always going to think that they are the main character and they deserve to be the main character. So when anybody in their sphere starts appearing to be, quote unquote, the main character to them, they're going to either try and one up that person or they're going to burn themselves out and burn all the bridges around them trying to recapture what they think they deserve.

Yeah. But, you know, to that point, what could they have accomplished if Ike Turner had been a nicer dude? Exactly. You know? Exactly. Like if he had been okay heading the band and being like, yeah, let's get Tina to the stars. Let's bring this review all the way home. Like they could have made it really big

and together had and achieved that dream. He just needed to understand that like Tina was the star but they could work together. But instead he wanted to control her. He wanted to own her. He wanted to be the one facilitating all of that and that's what was his downfall. I see what Ike Turner did and how he handled.

I'm like, dude, like you fucked up. Yeah, exactly. It's, you know, to a certain extent, Like, yes, there is being the star, but if you're able to help lift someone else to be the star, that can also bring you up as well. You know, lift as you climb, but there's also like, you know, you climb as you lift. If he had stuck with her, if he had been kind, if they had worked together and been partners in this music thing, they might still be touring as she's doing her solo career or went on to do her solo career, right? Yeah. They might still be together making music and making money and he wouldn't have record.

Label's breathing down his neck. But he wanted to be the star. He wanted to be the one that made it happen for him. Yeah. And Tina was just a means to an end for him. Unfortunately, yeah. And that was his downfall because she realized that she had worth outside of him. And like, that's really what that scene of them in the dressing room before she went on stage at the end is, is her being like, you got no power.

Yeah. I understand my worth. Yeah. And that's also the strength in her, in the divorce, understanding that her name is worth so much more than all of the material wealth that he potentially had and could lose in the divorce. All she needed was the name. That was powerful. Yeah. That was amazing.

Like, you don't have a penny to your name. You just want your name. Yeah. That's it. Because you know your value. It reminds me of Prince. Yes. The artist formerly known as Prince.

Yeah. Because he was like, he knew he had so many in the bag. Yeah. Like, I'm not going to like try to articulate any of that. You guys know the same. story better than I do so but you know what I'm saying it's like he just knew he knew what he had um and to have that much confidence in like your ability I love that I love seeing that I want that I'm nervous every time I go to make a short film or something I'm like oh my god I'm getting like

crazy imposter syndrome so you know but anyway we just need that mantra we got we got to steal I will steal, borrow, Tinta Turner's mantra. The Buddhist mantra. You know, we are a lotus, and no matter how much mud we are in, we will always bloom more beautiful. Yes. Y'all, on that, thanks so much. I'm Jabby Kui. This is Michael Boos.

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