What's Love Got to Do with It (1993)

A film about the singer Tina Turner and how she rose to stardom with her abusive husband Ike Turner and how she gained the courage to break free.

Director:

Brian Gibson

Writers:

Tina Turner (book), Kurt Loder (book),

Stars:

Angela Bassett, Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly, Virginia Capers

Nominated for 2 Oscars. Another 4 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Angela Bassett	...	Anna Mae Bullock / Tina Turner
Rae'Ven Larrymore Kelly	...	Young Anna Mae Bullock (as Rae'Ven Kelly)
Virginia Capers	...	Choir Mistress
Laurence Fishburne	...	Ike Turner, Sr.
Khandi Alexander	...	Darlene
Dororthy Thorton	...	Choir Member (as Dorothy Thornton)
Demetrice Cheathon	...	Choir Member
Nita Woods Allen	...	Choir Member
Helen Marie Lovelace	...	Choir Member
Natalie Wilson	...	Choir Member
Seymour Daniel Jr.	...	Choir Member
David McKinney	...	Choir Member
Jayd Stanfield	...	Choir Member
Maurice O'Neal	...	Choir Member
Frank Rasberry	...	Choir Member

Storyline

Anna Mae always had a special voice. Soon after arriving in St. Louis to live with the mother who had walked out when she was small, the now teenage Anna soon attracts the attention of pop group leader Ike Turner. She becomes the band's singer, his wife, and mother to his children - not all hers. In love with Ike and determined not to leave in the way her mother had, she finds herself the target of increasing violence from her unstable husband who can't see who is making the band such a success.

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Plot Keywords:

tina turner | singer | violence | abusive husband | love | 

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Taglines:

Not just the story of a life - The movie of a lifetime.

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Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for domestic violence, strong language, drug use and some sexuality

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 June 1993 (USA)

Also Known As:

Tina

Filming Locations:

Ambassador Hotel - 3400 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

£1,583,230 (UK) (15 October 1993)

Gross:

£3,420,933 (UK) (12 November 1993)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Touchstone Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

118 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In Ike Turner's autobiography "Taking Back My Name", he said that the scene where he beats and rapes Tina in their home studio, and the scene where he confronts her backstage with a handgun, never happened.

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Goofs

Lorraine's jacket falls off her shoulders when she drops her children off at Ike and Tina's house. In the next shot, it's back on her shoulders.

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Quotes

Grandma Georgiana: Your mama had to go away for a while.
Young Anna Mae Bullock: When is she coming back to get me?
Grandma Georgiana: She ain't, honey. She just ain't.

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Connections

Referenced in Chelsea Lately: Episode #6.154 (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Why Must We Wait Until Tonight"
Written by Bryan Adams and Robert John Lange

User Reviews

Two Red-Hot Blazing Performances Bring Fire, Glory and Nuance to Tina Turner's Story

It was gratifying to see rock legend Tina Turner earn the coveted Kennedy Center honor last month, certainly reason enough to revisit this wonderful biopic based on her 1987 self-affirming autobiography, "I, Tina" co-written with Rolling Stone editor Kurt Loder. Directed by the late Brian Gibson in an appropriately feverish manner, the 1993 movie still burns brightly thanks to the electrifying performances of Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne. There have been several fine performances in biopics of late - Jamie Foxx in "Ray", Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon in "Walk the Line" - but I still feel Bassett and Fishburne maintain the high watermark as they seem to inhabit the roles of Ike and Tina completely in this film.

Adapting probably the most melodramatic parts of Tina's book, Gibson and screenwriter Kate Lanier built a dramatic framework about the former Anna Mae Bullock that is somewhat standard-issue and probably biased, but it works on a visceral level as a story of personal triumph punctuated by some of the most gut-wrenching scenes of domestic violence captured on film. Playing one of the most recognizable and enduring celebrities in the rock world, Bassett manages to capture the physical mannerisms, vocal patterns, and onstage energy of the real Tina, even though her voice obviously had to be dubbed. With her almost distracting musculature, she convincingly rips into all her musical performances with unabated fire, but it's really in her dramatic scenes, especially when she becomes an increasingly degraded victim of her husband's demons, that she soars. Fishburne has an extremely tough role, as he has to transcend the inherent villainy of Ike by displaying the bravado and talent that brought the pair the spotlight in the early years. He brilliantly manages to imbue a spirit that is at once frightening and pitiable.

With a relatively sparse filmography, Gibson provides surprisingly sturdy direction here, often using an effective faux-combination of grainy home movies and TV programs to make the movie feel like a "Behind the Scenes" rock documentary. I particularly liked how he edited the inevitable "Proud Mary" - complete with gyrating Ikettes and Tina in her classic cave woman mini - to show the passage of time between the late sixties to the mid-seventies. Unsurprisingly, no one else makes nearly the impression of the two stars, though Jenifer Lewis has a few funny moments as Tina's mother Zelma, and Vanessa Bell Calloway does what she can in her switch from hard-bitten back-up singer to becalming Buddhist. Regardless, see it for two actors - sadly underutilized since this movie was released, the wondrous Bassett in particular - giving all they have into this memorable movie. The DVD has no significant extras other than the original trailer.