Synopsis
The joyous, emotional, heartbreaking celebration of the life and music of Whitney Houston, the greatest female R&B pop vocalist of all time. Tracking her journey from obscurity to musical superstardom.
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Cast
- Naomi AckieWhitney Houston
- Ashton SandersBobby Brown
- Stanley TucciClive Davis
- Nafessa WilliamsRobyn Crawford
- Lance A. WilliamsGerry Griffith
- Tamara TunieCissy Houston
- Clarke PetersJohn Houston
- Daniel WashingtonGary Houston
- JaQuan Malik JonesMichael Houston
- Kris SidberryPat Houston
Recommendations
- 80
Variety
“I Wanna Dance with Somebody” is the kind of lavishly impassioned all-stops-out biopic you either give into or you don’t — and if you do, you may find yourself getting so emotional, baby. - 70
The Hollywood Reporter
Critics will sniff, as they invariably do, about the familiar conventions of the music biopic. But the spirit of I Wanna Dance With Somebody transcends those conventions far more often than it gets weighed down by them. Anyone who loves Whitney Houston and her music will leave the film with that love reinforced — especially anyone who sees it in a theater with a wall-shaking sound system. - 60
The Guardian
It’s a muscular, heartfelt performance from Ackie. - 60
Empire
In what could have been a definitive tribute to Whitney Houston’s career, surface-level execution means her story is not quite done justice. But Naomi Ackie's performance shines above everything else. - 60
NME
I Wanna Dance with Somebody isn’t as illuminating as it could be, but it still feels like a fitting tribute to a brave and complicated artist with a genuinely incredible gift. - 50
USA Today
Like Rami Malek’s Freddie Mercury in “Rhapsody,” Ackie’s own voice is heard at times though mainly she’s performing to Houston’s own signature vocals. And the actress does an exceptional job capturing the pop singer’s mannerisms and performance style in those moments. It’s everything else in between that’s the real problem. - 50
IGN
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody is yet another music biopic that feels like a checklist of events rather than riveting drama. - 42
IndieWire
A music biopic so broad and hacky it makes “Jersey Boys” seem like “All that Jazz,” Kasi Lemmons’ well-acted but laughably trite Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody is an anonymous portrait of a singular artist — a by-the-numbers “Behind the Music” episode that needs 146 minutes to say almost nothing about a once-in-a-lifetime voice.
