The Temptations Allan Arkush Digital Life VHS

The Temptations
starring: Charles Malik Whitfield, D.B. Woodside, Terron Brooks, Christian Payton, Leon
directed by: Allan Arkush

Used Price: $1.58
Third Party New Price: $19.50

Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9781574927382
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
ISBN: 1574927388
Label: Evergreen Ent
Manufacturer: Evergreen Ent
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Evergreen Ent
Release Date: March 23, 1999
Running Time: 150 minutes
Sales Rank: 4901
Studio: Evergreen Ent
Theatrical Release Date: November 01, 1998

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Editorial Review:

Amazon.com:
The soap-opera career of Motown's most successful group, the Temptations, lends credence to the old belief that great art comes from troubled lives. Over three decades, the band struggled through numerous ego trips, countless members, broken relationships, coke addiction, alcoholism, suicide, cancer, deadly arthritis--in short, all the melodramatic devices necessary for a TV miniseries. This two-and-a-half-hour docudrama touches on all of these personal tragedies, but unfortunately forgets the real reason for the strength of the story: the music. Sure, there's wonderful reenactments of the quintet's finest material, such as 'My Girl,' 'Just My Imagination,' 'Papa Was a Rolling Stone' and 'The Way You Do the Things You Do,' all performed with the slick choreography and shimmering vocal harmonies that made the band legendary. But, unfortunately, director Allan Arkush (Rock and Roll High School) and writers Kevin Arkadie and Robert Johnson forget to put the music into any historical perspective. Why were the Temptations so important? What was their contribution to pop music? By watching this saccharine, manipulative exposé, you'd never know. The performances are nonetheless terrific, especially Charles Malik Whitfield as leader (and narrator) Otis Williams, D.B. Woodside as his partner, Melvin Franklin, and Leon as the group's talented livewire, David Ruffin. The DVD edition offers several fine features including 2.0 Dolby Surround Sound, a discography, cast and crew profiles, extensive production notes, and most important, the ability to jump to any of the seven songs performed... basically the main reason to watch this epic. --Dave McCoy

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Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- Looking for a song
In the Movie, Smokey Robinson sings a song at Melvin Franklin's Funeral. Can anyone one help me with the title of the song??????? Thank you

Rating:

- "Tall, Tan and Tempting" -- The Temptations
As one reviewer stated, "have a box of tissues handy." Absolutely! I started crying at the beginning of the movie and could not stop. I have all of the Temptations' records since they were first released on "the Gordy Records label"--one of Motown's many labels. I love the little-known early songs that were not included in the movie like "Farewell My Love" and "Growing". I especially like the one that did not "chart," "I Want A Love I Can See." It got a lot of air play in Washington, DC in the early 1960s. The movie brought back a flood of memories for me which prompted the flow of tears. I was a freshman in college when their first songs came out and rejoiced along with the whole campus after "The Way You Do the Things You Do" hit number one in 1964! Great movie, great actors and "true to life" characterizations, like the scene where their bus had a flat tire in the south and they were thought to be the "freedom ... Read More

Rating:

- The Temptationd DVD
GREAT entertainment if you love the old Motown, Soul, and Volt-Stax Mussel Shoals studios music sound. Also good if just interested in some of the early roots and groups of this phenomonon. It gives a look at a number of the Motown artists we all know about as real people with the same joys and struggles that we all share.

I saw part of this movie\mini series on cable one night and as soon as it went off got on Amazon to see if it was available. I think just about any music lover will enjoy this.

Rating:

- Love It!
I purchased the VHS version several years ago and watched it last night for the first time in a long time. I remember having seen the movie when it was originally broadcast on NBC back in the late 90s.

For anyone who is a fan of Motown, the Temptations, music from the 50s-60s era - this is a must see! The movie begins in 1957 and chronicles the history not only of the Temptations but includes a lot of Motown history as well. The music is out of this world!

Because I'd seen the show when it was originally aired on TV, I realized that some key scenes had been excluded from the VHS; this was very disappointing. Note that the special was broadcast on two nights at 2 hours each and the VHS is only 2-1/2 hours long, you can figure that quite a bit had been cut. The pacing seems too quick on the VHS and you get the feeling that you missed something. Case in point: There is a scene that had been ... Read More

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