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The Fighting Temptations (2003)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:105
Fresh:44
Rotten:61
Average Rating:5.4/10
Consensus: The music is the only saving grace in this predictable and eager-to-please comedy.
Runtime: 2 hrs 2 mins
Genre: Comedies
Synopsis: Darrin Hill (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) has just lost his job with a New York advertising firm and bill collectors are chasing him all over the city. But just when he thinks his luck has completely run... Darrin Hill (Cuba Gooding, Jr.) has just lost his job with a New York advertising firm and bill collectors are chasing him all over the city. But just when he thinks his luck has completely run out, Darrin discovers he's the only surviving relative of his Aunt Sally who has just left him $150,000.00. Traveling back to his small hometown of Montecarlo, Georgia, to attend the funeral and collect his inheritance, Darrin soon discovers that Sally's written a tiny catch into her will. Her last wish is that her beloved nephew create a choir, enter it in the annual Gospel Explosion and bring home a victory. Between the bickering and the difficulties finding talented singers in the community, not to mention that his heart just isn't into the whole thing, Darrin has his work cut out for him... until he meets Lilly (Beyonce Knowles). A beautiful jazz singer with a voice to match, Lilly awakens feelings in Darrin he didn't know he had. Suddenly, collecting the money or heading back to New York City aren't important anymore, and he realizes that Aunt Sally left him something much more than an inheritance. -- © Paramount Pictures [More]
Starring: Cuba Gooding, Beyonce Knowles, Mike Epps, Latanya Richardson
Starring: Cuba Gooding, Beyonce Knowles, Mike Epps, Latanya Richardson, Steve Harvey, T-Bone, Wendell Pierce, Rue McClanahan
Director: Jonathan Lynn
Director: Jonathan Lynn
Screenwriter: Elizabeth Hunter, Saladin K. Patterson
Producer: David Gale, Loretha C. Jones, Jeff Pollack
Composer: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, James "Big Jim" Wright
Studio: Paramount Pictures
Reviews for The Fighting Temptations
It feels more like an artificial fable than a story we can sink our teeth into.
All about the music, and you'd have to be truly tone-deaf not to respond to its soaring harmonies and spirited spirituality.
No matter how many speakers they add, surround sound will never sound as good as [a live choir], and the Gospel has a much better plot [than this film].
The filmmakers seem to have meant to offer up a spiritual message about community and faith, but it's muddled and hard to find with romance, comedy and phenomenal gospel performances all fighting for the spotlight.
Gooding's performance is burdened with an unnecessary complexity that works against its comic potential.
When Gooding and Knowles appear together, they drain off energy like batteries hooked in reverse.
This film would have been better with a lot more gospel and a lot less Gooding.
The plot is silly, but if you like good music, you'll forgive them for this.
Latest News for The Fighting Temptations
June 14, 2005:
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