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

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

Controversial for its graphic depictions of abuse, this Tina Turner biopic still finds soul in its powerful performances

6.9

Movie

United States of America
English
Drama, History, Music
1993
BRIAN GIBSON
Angela Bassett, Barry Shabaka Henley, Bo Kane
118 min

What it's about

Singer Tina Turner rises to stardom while mustering the courage to break free from her abusive husband Ike.

The take

With other available resources that tell a more well-balanced story of Tina Turner's life (notably, the 2021 documentary Tina), What's Love Got to Do with It shouldn't, by any means, be used seen as the definitive portrait of the American-Swiss singer. Still, while this 1993 biopic, insists on depicting violence instead of dissecting it, there's something to be said about how uncompromisingly it shows us what an abusive relationship can look like. As a plea to see beyond the public personas of celebrities, the film makes for an effective statement—especially because of a truly despicable turn from Laurence Fishburne, and the power that steadily builds within Angela Bassett.

Comments

Add a comment

Your name

Your comment

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

UP NEXT 

Rain (2019)

A girl finds true love in this unusual, marvelous, rain-soaked coming-of-age drama

8.1

Colors of Evil: Red (2024)

A gory and fluffy crime drama hiding behind nonlinear storytelling

5.5

Stand and Deliver (1988)

An inspirational, if a bit embellished, depiction of a maverick math teacher

7.4

Lilies (1996)

A passionate, underseen queer gem where a confession transforms into a memory play

7.5

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

A star-studded and riveting legal drama with a blockbuster feel.

8.1

The Guilty (2018)

A minimalist, razor-sharp thriller that will have you gasping for air.

9.0

Two of Us (2020)

A refreshingly gripping romantic drama where a retiree does everything to stay by her lover’s side

7.2

Forgotten Love (2023)

The stunning third take of the classic Polish pre-war melodrama

7.7

As Tears Go By (1988)

Wong Kar Wai elevates the formulaic crime romance drama with the beginnings of his singular style

7.0

System Crasher (2019)

A tale of trauma and one of the most talked about movies on Netflix in 2020.

9.0

Curated by humans, not algorithms.

agmtw logo

© 2024 agoodmovietowatch, all rights reserved.