Fresh
It compares to that other "legitimate" musical smash of recent vintage, Chicago. It just doesn't have the life or fun of Chicago.
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel
Overview
A trio of female soul singers cross over to the pop charts in the early 1960s, facing their own personal struggles along the way.
Director and cast
- Bill Condon Director
- Jamie Foxx as Curtis Taylor Jr.
- Beyoncé as Deena Jones
- Eddie Murphy as James "Thunder" Early
- Danny Glover as Marty Madison
- Jennifer Hudson as Effie White
- Anika Noni Rose as Lorrell Robinson
- Keith D. Robinson as C.C. White
- Sharon Leal as Michelle Morris
- Hinton Battle as Wayne
- Mariah Iman Wilson as Magic
Critics on Rotten Tomatoes
Top critics, in their words
79%
Tomatometer
Fresh
The opening rump-shaking immediately sets the tone: Dreamgirls pulses with sheer exuberance. When was the last time a musical, much less a huge Hollywood production, felt this alive?
Joshua Rothkopf, Time Out New York
Rotten
It reserves singing and dancing for the stage until Jamie Foxx just randomly bursts into verse while strolling down the street. Dreamgirls wants to be Effie but ends up as Deena: thin, smooth, unburdened by a personality.
David Jenkins, Time Out
Fresh
Watching Dreamgirls on the big screen feels like an event somehow. Maybe it's the conviction and passion that the actors bring to their roles.
Dana Stevens, Slate
Fresh
Dreamgirls is the entire musical package, a triumph of old school on-screen glamour, and we wouldn't want it any other way.
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times
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