What's Love Got to Do With It

1993. Dir: Brian Gibson. Starring: Angela Bassett, Laurence Fishburne, Jenifer Lewis, Terrence Riggins and Vanessa Bell Calloway. ●●●●○

As I mentioned in my last biopic review it is difficult to seperate our thoughts about an individual from the film about them. Admittedly this is slightly easier with Tina Turner, she's a fantastic performer but let's face it she isn't Gandhi. In What's Love got to Do With It there is a struggle to seperate the Tina of the music and the Tina of the best-selling autobiography on whcih the film is based.

After a brief intro where Tina is abandoned by her mother the film follows the rise and fall of the abusive relationship between Tina and Ike Turner, played by Angela Bassett and Laurence Fishburne respectively.



The film makes harrowing viewing. From early on the nature of Ike Turner is revealed in his cavalier attitude to his ex's attempted suicide and cheap wedding to Tina. This escalates into fist fights and one particulary tough to watch rape scene.

Both actors manage extremely well in these scenes, which must have been tough and harrowing to film.

I was especially impressed by Fishburne, whose explosive violence was often followed by moments of either immense alpha-male behaviour or pitiful whining. His cries, early in the film, that everyone leaves him are shockingly believeable both as a cry for help and as a hook to keep Tina locked into the cycle of abuse.

The camerawork and editing are professional but nothing to write home about, but the set direction and costumes are marvellous. We get a real sense of the times as they move from the 60's through to the late 70's.

Where the movie fails though it's the "westernisation" of the abusive couple. Tina is given no persoanlity flaws at all - a perfect angel throughout seemingly incapable of any unprovoked negative act other than pride in her voice. On the other hand Ike is always portrayed in a negative light, even the tough way he deals with his group (surely a necessity in show business) is only made light of. Most of the other characters are either tacitly complicit with Ike's behaviour, see Zelma Bullock, or seemingly ignorant to the situation like the rest of the band.

I don't want to sound like I'm defending Ike. He most certainly was a vicious bully. And there can never be an excuse for domestic abuse on this scale. But maybe if the screenplay went some way to recognise Ike's skills then it may have got that fifth star.