Nat Geo is known for nature documentaries, but it is also stepping into the biopic lane. Making the third anthology miniseries after Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso, “Genius: Aretha” has been said to be the most commercial and best installment of Nat Geo’s anthology series. Cynthia Erivo is said to have given a truly inspiring performance as Aretha Franklin the “Queen of Soul”. Coupled with great production, it seems that R-E-S-P-E-C-T should be given all around.
Cynthia Erivo proves that she is the right woman for the job, because recreating the unpredictable life of the great Aretha Franklin requires more than just lip syncing her songs with convincing power and excitement. It requires that you transport yourself back to a life unfortunately filled with trauma and challenges. One of the best examples I can think of this kind of acting was Jamie Foxx in “Ray.” I’m convinced that there was a good bit of people convinced that Jamie Foxx was Ray Charles for a little while. It’s all about the subtle movements that explained the tragedy that he went through, and we hear that Cynthia Erivo does exactly that.
This is the first installment of Nat Geo’s series that is about black women, so there may be some criticism about the traumatic images that are shown in the series. If there is one thing for sure, this series will definitely show us why Aretha earned the title “Queen of Soul.”
“Genius: Aretha” premieres March 21 at 9 p.m. on National Geographic, with episodes available the next day on Hulu.
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