August 29, 2004: Headlines: COS - Bolivia: Movies: Music: Hollywood: USA Today: Ray Charles himself insisted that director Taylor Hackford tell the truth, no matter how downbeat — the heroin addiction, cold-hearted business dealings and rampant womanizing that compromised his marriage — as well as celebrate the more up-tempo memories.
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August 29, 2004: Headlines: COS - Bolivia: Movies: Music: Hollywood: USA Today: Ray Charles himself insisted that director Taylor Hackford tell the truth, no matter how downbeat — the heroin addiction, cold-hearted business dealings and rampant womanizing that compromised his marriage — as well as celebrate the more up-tempo memories.
Ray Charles himself insisted that director Taylor Hackford tell the truth, no matter how downbeat — the heroin addiction, cold-hearted business dealings and rampant womanizing that compromised his marriage — as well as celebrate the more up-tempo memories.
Ray Charles himself insisted that director Taylor Hackford tell the truth, no matter how downbeat — the heroin addiction, cold-hearted business dealings and rampant womanizing that compromised his marriage — as well as celebrate the more up-tempo memories.
The art & soul of Jamie Foxx
By Susan Wloszczyna, USA TODAY
TORONTO — For a good time, call Jamie Foxx.
Critical favorite: Jamie Foxx received a standing ovation at the Toronto International Film Festival for his role in the Ray Charles biopic.
By Nicola Goode, Universal Studios
The actor's rep as the L.A. host with the most is legendary. "I've thrown parties for Puffy, Mya, Tweet, Jay-Z," he says, ticking off an elite fleet of uni-monikered guests. "They've all been at my house."
[Excerpt]
Besides, Brother Ray himself insisted that director Taylor Hackford tell the truth, no matter how downbeat — the heroin addiction, cold-hearted business dealings and rampant womanizing that compromised his marriage — as well as celebrate the more up-tempo memories.
The truth is, you can't imagine another human being who could don the shades, pound the keys and smile that joyous smile with as much authority and power as Foxx. The transformation is seamless.
"When you make a biography, you live or die by the person who plays the lead role," says Hackford, who began his feature career with 1980's The Idolmaker, a tribute to early pop idols.
Foxx first caught his eye in supporting roles in dramas, as a cocky third-string quarterback in Any Given Sunday and as balding ring man Bundini Brown in Ali. But despite Foxx's physical resemblance to Charles, Hackford wasn't convinced he could pull it off.
"He hadn't carried a movie yet. We met, and I told him how difficult it was going to be to lip sync and everything else. As for the piano, I told him someone else would do it. He said, 'You don't have to do that. I play the piano.' I said, 'I play the piano, too, but we're not Ray Charles.' "
That's when Foxx explained how he started playing when he was 3, led the gospel choir in his church and went to university on a piano scholarship. Says a duly impressed Hackford, "I stopped looking."
Then there's the dedication factor. "His style sometimes belies his commitment," says the filmmaker, nursing his hoarseness with hot tea after a night of revelry with Foxx.
"I told him that to understand Ray Charles, he needed to cover his eyes and go blind," Hackford says. "Most actors would say, 'Yeah, I'll do that for a day.' Jamie went blind for the whole film."
During the shoot, Foxx wore prosthetic devices that obscured his vision.
"I hyperventilated for the first week and a half," he recalls. "You feel like you're being closed up. I got used to it, but other people didn't. They would say, 'Lunch, everybody,' and everybody would leave and forget I couldn't get up and walk around."
He also dropped 30 pounds, mainly muscle, to gain a leaner Ray-like physique. Other required attributes came more naturally, such as both men's shared abundance of seductive charm. Foxx has been known to cause the likes of racket-swinging diva Serena Williams to sweat just by serenading her with a silly ditty called Can I Be Your Tennis Ball?
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Story Source: USA Today
This story has been posted in the following forums: : Headlines; COS - Bolivia; Movies; Music; Hollywood
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