"DreamGirls" Does Right by Detroit

Jennifer Hudson carries film about singing group.

The most talked about film around town these days is "Dreamgirls", the film adaption of the 1981 Broadway musical based loosely on the intertwined stories of Mowtown Records and its most famous singing group, the Supremes. The story is set superficially in Detroit, almost as a bit player. As far as I could tell not a single scene was actually shot in Detroit, but overall the movie and its story put Detroit in a fair and accurate light. A non-Detroiter viewing this film will see a vibrant city, rich in texture, history and interesting people.

The film stars Beyonce Knowles, Eddie Murphy, Jamie Foxx and a small role for Danny Glover. They all perform admirably with a somewhat scattered storyline, but the the real show-stopper is Jennifer Hudson as Effie White, a character fashioned somewhat after Florence Ballard of the real Supremes. The performances, songs and production values are excellent. (What else would you expect from DreamWorks?) Be warned, though, that not a single Motown song is sung. All the music is original, written for the play and the movie.

I particularly enjoyed the scenes that take place in a Detroit night club in the final third of the story, when Effie starts to make her singing comeback. The sights and sounds of these club scenes evoked a powerful memory of the many intimate clubs with tables for two or four in dark, smoky rooms once scattered around town, but mostly gone today.

In all, not a great flick, but a very good one. Just get a big tub of popcorn, sit back and enjoy a movie filled with lush sets, lavish costumes, interesting characters, and feel good about Detroit.

And the Beat Goes On

If this wasn't so sad, it would be funny. The fourth homicide of the week occurred today on the city's west side in an apparent armed hold-up. The story just hit the Detroit News Website. See the next post, below.

Killings Bad Timing

I don't want to turn this blog into a police blotter, but the recent killings of three people in downtown Detroit this week could not have come at a worse time. Monday, two employees of Chelio's Chili restaurant were stabbed to death by a disgruntled employee who was later apprehended. Wednesday, a woman was shot and killed near the Second Baptist Church of Detroit, an historical landmark in Greektown. (The "good news" is that the killings were not random; the assailants knew their victims.)

I say they couldn't have come at a worse time because the national and international media is in town for two weeks to cover the International Auto Show at the Cobo Exposition Center and we know how a few of them love to bash Detroit. Once again Detroit will probably get a black eye in the media as being the "murder capital" of the U.S. Unfortunately, FBI statistics will bear this out.

Fortunately, as this Detroit News article on the killings points out, downtown Detroit is one of the safest neighborhoods in all of the America, and I can vouch for that. I have lived in downtown Detroit most of my adult life and except for the occasional car theft or home invasion that happen routinely in the suburbs, living downtown is very safe and enjoyable.

Auto Show Sparks Cobo Expansion Talk Again

The annual Detroit International Auto Show is coming to town next week and once again there's buzz about the need to expand Cobo Exposition Center or lose the show to another venue.

The auto show is one of Detroit's premiere events, drawing international attention and millions of dollars in revenue and its loss would deal a serious blow to the city.

Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and Wayne County Executive Robert Ficano each have a different plan on the table but as always, the big issue is who will pay for it. Plans to expand Cobo have been around since Coleman Young was mayor (at least), so don't hold your breath.

Because it's a regional facility most agree that the cost of expansion should be shared by the three counties of Metro Detroit, but nobody can agree on a formula to make that happen. Cobo was expanded and upgraded once, I believe in the eighties.

Asian Village Yet Another Diamond for Dowtown

New attractions continue to spring up in downtown Detroit. This time it will be a place called Asian Village located in an existing building on the corner of Beaubean and Atwater near the Renaissance Center and the Detroit River. The village will offer a marketplace with items from Asian countries, an upscale restaurant and bar called Fusia , a coffee house and tea house. The project was the brainchild of Dominic Pangborn, Detroit's premiere graphic designer.

Dominic Pangborn