Adapted from the acclaimed August Wilson stage play, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom instantly s the pantheon of all-time great jazz and blues movies. Starring Viola Davis and the late great Chadwick Boseman in Oscar-worthy performances, the film has garnered sterling reviews since debuting on Netflix on December 18, 2020.
In addition to its 98% Certified Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom currently boasts an 88/100 Metascore. Poised to be a major awards season contender in 2021, here's how Ma Rainey's Black Bottom stacks up in the annals of jazz and blues movies.
Mo' Better Blues (1990)
Spike Lee's superb 1990 movie Mo Better Blues focuses on Bleek Gilliam (Denzel Washington), a hotshot jazz trumpeter navigating his personal and professional life in New York during the 1980s.
When Bleek rises to prominence as a musician and forms The Bleek Quintet, he forms a rival with band member Shadow (Wesley Snipes). As Bleek makes a series of bad personal decisions while enjoying professional success, he tries hard to keep the Quintet intact. The film features jazz music from legends, Branford Marsalis and Terence Blanchard.
Paris Blues (1961)
With all due respect to St. Louis Blues, Martin Ritt's Paris Blues ranks a bit higher. The film stars Paul Newman and Sidney Poitier as a pair of American jazz musicians living the high-life of an artist in the City of Lights.
Newman plays a jazz trombone player named Ram, while Poitier plays a skilled saxophonist named Eddie. When the two meet a pair of American women on vacation, they strike up a romance while continuing to play clubs at night. The great jazz musician Louis Armstrong plays a role in the film and the soundtrack is provided by the legendary Duke Ellington.
Born To Be Blue (2015)
While an honorable mention for Don Cheadle's Miles Davis biopic Miles Ahead is in order, the Chet Baker biopic Ethan Hawke gives one of his greatest performances as Baker, the heroin-addicted jazz trumpeter attempting a comeback in the late 1960s.
Directed by Robert Budreau, the movie concerns Chet Baker participating in a movie about his life. When production is shut down to Chet's self-destructive behavior, he falls for his costar, Jane (Carmen Ejogo), who encourages him to mount a musical comeback. Hawke performs several of the songs himself in the film.
Sweet And Lowdown (1999)
Woody Allen's Sweet and Lowdown is a fictional ode to iconic French jazz guitarist, Django Reinhardt. Sean Penn stars as Emmet Ray, a guitarist who worships Reinhardt while rising to prominence in 1930s New York.
Loosely based on Fellini's La Strada, the film also borrows its title from the 1944 Benny Goodman jazz musical, Sweet and Low-Down. Plot-wise, Emmet falls out of favor with ruthless gangsters while forging a romance with a mute woman named Hattie (Samantha Morton). Penn and Morton both earned Oscar nods for their performances.
The Cotton Club (1984)
Despite being a box-office flop, Francis Ford Coppola's The Cotton Club recreates the 1928 Harlem jazz scene like no other. The two-time Oscar-nominated film boasts a stellar ensemble cast including Richard Gere, Gregory Hines, Diane Lane, Nicolas Cage, Laurence Fishburne, and many more. Duke Ellington provided much of the music for the film.
The Cotton Club was a swinging nightclub in Harlem where several top jazz musicians performed on a nightly basis. The popular club also attracted a slew of unsavory characters, such as Dutch Shultz and his criminal mafiosos.
Bird (1988)
Forest Whitaker earned the first Golden Globe of his career for his soulful turn as jazz legend Charlie Parker, aka Bird. Clint Eastwood won a Golden Globe as Best Director for the film.
Bird tells the life-story of Charlie Parker, a talented jazz saxophonist who leaves Kansas City in 1934 and arrives in New York in 1940, where he finds instant success. However, as he rises to prominence, he becomes addicted to heroin and struggles to maintain his virtuosic status. Told through elliptical montages, the film has one of the best jazz soundtracks ever recorded.
Ma Rainey's Black Bottom (2020)
With its stellar music and top-notch performances, Ma Rainey's Black Bottom already ranks among the greatest jazz and blues films ever made. August Wilson's stage play is more poignant than ever, and Chadwick Boseman's performance is nothing short of transcendent.
Set in two major locations, the story concerns Ma Rainey's (Viola Davis) band , including the talented Levee (Boseman), as they argue over how to perform the titular song. The film underscores themes of female empowerment and artistic integrity.
Lady Sings The Blues (1972)
Legendary soul singer Diana Ross made her big-screen debut by playing the iconic Billie Holiday in Lady Sings the Blues. In addition to four Academy Award nominations, Ross earned an Oscar nod for Best Leading Actress for her work. She also won the Best Newcomer Award at the 1973 Golden Globes.
The sweeping biopic chronicles the life of Elinore Harris (aka Billie Holiday), from her troubled and abusive childhood to her rise to glory among the jazz circuit, her crippling drug addiction, and all the detours and pitfalls in between.
'Round Midnight (1986)
Preeminent jazz musician Herbie Hancock won an Oscar for his Best Original Score on 'Round Midnight, named after the classic Thelonious Monk song. The film tells the story of Dexter Gordon (Dale Turner in an Oscar-nominated role), the all-time great tenor saxophonist.
Featuring music from Gordon, Monk, Hancock, Charlie Parker, Chet Baker, Cole Porter, and more, 'Round Midnight was directed by French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier and is the best jazz movie that few people have heard about.
Whiplash (2014)
With sizzling energy and unmatched tempo, Damien Chazelle's feature debut Whiplash continues to rank among the best jazz movies ever made. The film tells the story of Andrew Nieman (Miles Teller), an aspiring jazz drummer who faces the biggest challenge of his life in the form of his sadistic teacher, Fletcher (J.K. Simmons in an Oscar-winning role).
Upon enrolling in an ultra-competitive music conservatory, Nieman slowly works his way into the first drummer chair, where he is ruthlessly challenged, tormented, and abused by Fletcher at every turn.
