Beyond the Lights Reviews

I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this flick but since I have a weak spot for Gugu Mbatha-Raw and since it was available on Netflix, I thought I might as well check it out. Well, to be honest, it wasn’t really a strong story but, fortunately, Gina Prince-Bythewood managed to make the most of this rather generic material. Above all, I was again so impressed by Gugu Mbatha-Raw. Indeed, not only she never looked more gorgeous but she was also so charismatic and I think she gave here one of her best performances so far. Nate Parker was not bad either and he had nice a chemistry with Mbatha-Raw but his character could have been more developed though. However, Minnie Driver’s character was just a walking stereotype and she was rather annoying each time she was involved. They did try to make her character more complex towards the end but it came way too late, I’m afraid. Eventually, it could have been interesting to tell the story more from her point of view instead of turning her into the usual evil-mother-ready-to-do-anything-to-become-rich. I know, it might seem that it didn’t really like this movie but, while I still think the story was rather weak, the directing was actually quite solid and, above all, Gugu Mbatha-Raw was just quite fascinating to behold. It’s too bad that, after being praised for this lead part and also for ‘Belle’ (which I still need to see), she spent the next years playing in some minor parts in some rather forgettable movies. Anyway, to conclude, in spite of its flaws, it was still a decent watch though and I think it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre.