Jennifer Hudson as Effie White in Dreamgirls
Best Supporting Actress at the 79th Annual Oscars (2006)
Notable Quote:
“I don’t do backup.”
Synopsis:
Dreamgirls is the story of an amateur girl group, fronted by Effie White (Jennifer Hudson) that rises to fame when they fall under the management of shady fuck Curtis Taylor (Jamie Foxx). It’s definitely not based on the Supremes though, absolutely not, please don’t sue me Diana Ross.
The character:
Effie White is the classic example of the “difficult woman” in show business. When, say, she gets replaced as the lead singer because she’s “less beautiful” (read: she’s fat and has dark skin), she’s resentful and speaks up for herself, which of course gets her branded as a pain. Then Curtis starts cheating on her, so of course she’s pissy, which leads him to drop her from the group, and when she tries to make a comeback, he literally attempts to ruin her career!? It’s exactly what always happens to women in show business who speak out because they ask to be treated just slightly less terribly, and of course, that treatment is even worse for a Black woman who dares to get angry about unfairness.
With all that being said, I like that Effie isn’t some perfect victim. She can definitely be surly, and she’s always complaining about weird pains, and she takes out a lot of her anger with Curtis on her fellow Dreamgirls. And she’s often a little too proud for her own good. For instance, after she’s dumped from the group, she won’t stoop to a job that isn’t singing, because she knows that’s what she’s good at. She refuses to accept money from her brother, because he didn’t stand up for her, even though she (and her daughter), even though she could really use it. It’s admirable, but also very frustrating, and complicates the character nicely
The performance:
Obviously, JHud is amazing. Listen, is she an incredible actress? I’d say no, but she’s quite good, and she’s got a few things going for her. This is her debut acting performance and watching it, you can really feel that: I don’t mean that in a shady way, there’s genuinely a freshness about her, a sense that she’s excited to be in this film. At the same time, her performance feels relaxed, as if she’s been doing this for a while. Imagine being a regular ass person, and then, in your first movie, acting against superstars like Beyonce and Jamie Foxx?! And she holds her own!
Hudson just has a great presence. Of course, a huge part of that is the absolutely incredible voice. Again, she’s singing alongside freaking Beyonce, and doesn’t struggle at all. She’s likeable and brings a necessary fire to the character of Effie. I feel a little bit of weirdness that she got this award for playing a sassy Black lady, but I also don’t wanna unfairly scrutinize the awards that go to BIPOC folks – just know that I’ve got my eye on you, Oscars. Anyway, I’m glad she won!
The movie:
Okay, luckily no one reads this blog, because if I had any readers, I’d lose them at this point: as a first time view, I found Dreamgirls disappointing. I actually really disliked it! The plot is boring and staid, it felt like the movie never got going, and I don’t like the music. Of course the singing is incredible, but the songs are bad, and all felt like they were exactly the same. It’s all the bad beats of a biopic, without even being about a person, because it’s not officially based on the Supremes. Honestly, it should have been! I would’ve preferred a Supremes jukebox musical! The characters felt flat, and not that well-sketched out. I’ll conclude by saying that I’ve never liked that “you and you and you, you’re gonna love me” song, eek, please don’t dox me!
Was the Oscar deserved?
Yes, even if I don’t love the movie, I love that Jennifer Hudson has an Oscar.