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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

Soul Power

EMAILPRINTSony Pictures Classics

Soul Power reviews
76
9.0 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 22 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 1 votes
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Movie Info

Genre(s): Documentary

Written by:

Directed by: Jeffrey Levy-Hinte

Release Date:
Theatrical: July 10, 2009

Running Time: 93 minutes, Color

Origin: USA

Summary

RATING: PG-13 for some thematic elements and brief strong language

Starring Muhammad Ali, James Brown, Celia Cruz, B.B. King, Don King, and Miriam Makeba

In 1974, the most celebrated American R&B acts of the time came together with the most renowned musical groups in Africa for a 12-hour, three-night long concert held in Kinshasa, Zaire. The dream-child of Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine, this music festival became a reality when they convinced boxing promoter Don King to combine the event with “The Rumble in the Jungle,” the epic fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, previously chronicled in the Academy Award-winning documentary When We Were Kings. (Sony Classics)

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Philadelphia Inquirer Dan DeLuca

Explosively exciting film.

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90

The New York Times A.O. Scott

Soul Power, as aptly and succinctly titled a movie as I have ever seen, takes you to a place where the discipline that produces great popular art is indistinguishable from the ecstasy that art creates.

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90

Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan

A vibrant and joyous new documentary.

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90

Washington Post Ann Hornaday

Explodes in a burst of energy, musical chops and an eerie political prescience that makes it feel like something beamed from some past-is-future time warp.

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88

St. Louis Post-Dispatch Joe Williams

Soul Power is both a funk-tastic time capsule and a timeless celebration of the human spirit.

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83

The Onion (A.V. Club) Nathan Rabin

James Brown, B.B. King, and a dazzling array of top African, Afro-Cuban, and African-American talent finally gets its own solo spotlight in Soul Power.

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83

Christian Science Monitor Peter Rainer

Levy-Hinte has said that a great deal more concert footage exists. I can't wait for the expanded version DVD.

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80

Empire Philip Wilding

A real treat for fans of Ali and music alike.

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80

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

Period pieces can be marvelous or musty, depending on the period, as well as the piece. Soul Power is marvelous.

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80

New York Daily News Elizabeth Weitzman

Anyone awed by 1996's "When We Were Kings" - and really, that should be anyone who's seen it - will consider this vivid companion piece essential viewing.

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75

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

What's infectious in Soul Power is the almost shocking optimism of its America-meets-Africa '70s world-beat vibe.

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75

Boston Globe Wesley Morris

The idea is to share with us that this show happened. But gluttons for these artists and for music festivals in general might wonder, as I have, whether there's any way the filmmakers might share more of the remaining 123 1/2 hours.

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75

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) James Adams

Pretty much a non-stop head-bobbing knee-bouncer.

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75

Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy

It's best seen as a breezy entertainment and a reminder of how potent some of these performers -- many of whom are dead -- were in their primes.

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70

Variety Eddie Cockrell

Joyously funky documentary.

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70

Village Voice Ernest Hardy

Takes too long to get to the meat of its matter, but captivates once it does.

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67

Austin Chronicle Thomas Fawcett

Artfully stitched together sans narration, Soul Power stands alongside "Wattstax" as a critical concert film of the Black Power era.

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65

NPR Mark Jenkins

Delightfully, Kinshasa's streets are alive with music, and snippets of sidewalk performances are integrated into the movie. The musicians are unidentified, alas, but then after 35 years, the filmmakers probably don't know who they are.

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63

USA Today Claudia Puig

The concert footage is mesmerizing; the planning leading up to the show is pedestrian.

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63

Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach

For a documentary about a music festival, Soul Power doesn't include nearly enough music.

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60

The Hollywood Reporter Neil Young

While there's an awful lot to like about this infectious celebration of a remarkable event featuring some superb, larger-than-life performers at the top of their game, the enterprise comes across as a bit of a missed opportunity.

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50

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

As the record of a cultural event, Soul Power is a hit-and-miss affair.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this movie is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 1 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

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