Lady Sings the Blues (1972)

My Review

Diana Ross delivered an outstanding performance as legendary singer Billie Holliday in “Lady Sings the Blues.” Though the film was criticized for playing fast and loose with the facts of her life, director Sidney J. Furie (“The Ipcress File” 1965) created a very entertaining film that has excellent dialogue, numerous musical numbers, great acting, and indefinable “atmospherics” that often make a great motion picture. He was aided by a well-written screenplay by Terence McCloy, Chris Clark, and Suzanne de Passe, adapted from Holiday’s 1956 autobiography of the same name.

The supporting cast behind Diana Ross (in her feature film debut) includes Billy Dee Williams, Richard Pryor, James Callahan, Isabel Sanford, Scatman Carothers, Ned Glass, Paul Hampton, Sid Melton, Virginia Capers, Yvonne Fair, Jester Hairston, Lynn Hamilton, Pauline Myers, Milton Selzer, Robert Gordy, and Ned Glass as The Agent.

The many Billie Holliday songs in the film performed by Diana Ross were produced under the supervision of composer, arranger, and conductor Michel Legrand. The film was nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Actress (Ross), Best Original Screenplay, Best Art Direction, Best Costume Design, and Best Scoring. “Lady Sings the Blues” was the tenth highest grossing film of 1972 for Motown Productions and Paramount Pictures.