Yesterday, I went to see Joyful Noise, starring Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah, with my friend. We laughed all the way through the movie. It’s adorable, sweet, funny, reverent, and irreverent. And there’s some pretty awesome gospel remixes of pop songs like Usher’s “Yeah” and MJ’s “Man in the Mirror.” I love the way Dolly and Queen were willing to make fun of themselves in the movie, which helped them to create real and sympathetic characters.
I am so sick of movies about psychopaths, and war, and infidelity. Joyful Noise “tells the story of an unlikely partnership between two strong-minded women (Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton) who are forced to work together to save a small town gospel choir after budget cuts threaten to shut them down.” Thank you, Warner Bros. for having the courage to do this movie. In this era of big budget films that just end up making us feel worse than we went in, this movie celebrates spiritual faith, while also acknowledging the realities and temptations of being human. It’s fun, uplifting, and a little teensy bit bawdy.
I’ve been a life-long Dolly Parton fan, since I spent an entire summer inside as a kid, avoiding the North Carolina summer heat, watching “Dolly Parton Live” repeatedly on HBO. (The new channel really only had the rights to a few shows that summer.) And I think Queen Latifah is a talented comedian and musician. I was very happy to see these women who espouse such positivity come together in this movie. Nevermind what the critics say, or what your coworkers heard about it. Is the plotline original? No, it’s like Bring It On, but for a gospel choir (kind of), or a different version of that Beyonce/Cuba Gooding, Jr. movie (sort of), but come on, now– do you want to worry about what people say or do you want to have fun?
