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{{Short description|2004 biographical film about Ray Charles}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{use mdy dates|date=November 2023}}
{{Infobox film
| name
| image
|
| director = [[Taylor Hackford]]
| producer = {{Plainlist|
* Taylor Hackford
* [[Stuart Benjamin]]
* [[Howard Baldwin]]
* [[Karen Baldwin (producer)|Karen Baldwin]]
}}
| screenplay = [[James L. White (screenwriter)|James L. White]]
| story = {{Plainlist|
* Taylor Hackford
* James L. White
}}
| starring = {{Plainlist|
* [[Jamie Foxx]]
* [[Kerry Washington]]
* [[Clifton Powell]]
* [[Harry Lennix]]
* [[Terrence Howard]]
* [[Larenz Tate]]
* [[Richard Schiff]]
* [[Regina King]]
}}
| music = [[Craig Armstrong (composer)|Craig Armstrong]]
| cinematography = [[Paweł Edelman]]
| editing = [[Paul Hirsch (film editor)|Paul Hirsch]]
| studio = {{Unbulleted list|[[Bristol Bay Productions]]|Anvil Films|Baldwin Entertainment Group}}
| distributor = [[Universal Pictures]]
| released = {{Film date|2004|10|29}}
| runtime = 152 minutes
| country = United States
| language = English
| budget = $40 million<ref name="BOM">[https://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=ray.htm "''Ray'' (2004)"]. ''[[Box Office Mojo]]''. IMDb. Retrieved March 15, 2014.</ref>
| gross = $124 million<ref name="BOM" />
}}
'''''Ray''''' is a 2004 American [[biographical film|biographical]] [[drama film]] focusing on 30 years in the life of [[Soul music|soul]] musician [[Ray Charles]].{{efn|Director Taylor Hackford noted this focus on the years 1935–1965 in his DVD commentary for the film; the only exception to this focus is the film's final scene featuring [[Julian Bond]] and set in the [[Georgia State Capitol]] in 1979, a scene Hackford included at Charles' specific request.<ref name=DVD>{{cite AV media|title=Ray (audio commentary) |type=DVD |year=2005|publisher=Universal Studios Home Entertainment}}</ref>}} The [[independent film|independently produced film]] was co-produced and directed by [[Taylor Hackford]]; it was written by [[James L. White (screenwriter)|James L. White]] from a story by Hackford and White. It stars [[Jamie Foxx]] as Charles, along with [[Kerry Washington]], [[Clifton Powell]], [[Harry Lennix]], [[Terrence Howard]], [[Larenz Tate]], [[Richard Schiff]], and [[Regina King]] in supporting roles. Along with Hackford, the film was also produced by [[Stuart Benjamin]], [[Howard Baldwin]], and Karen Baldwin.
It was released on October 29, 2004, by [[Universal Pictures]]. It received generally positive reviews from critics, with particular praise for Foxx's performance and became a box office success, grossed $124 million worldwide on a budget of $25 million.
''Ray'' received [[List of accolades received by Ray (film)|many accolades and nominations]] and was nominated in six categories at the [[77th Academy Awards]], including for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]. It won two Academy Awards: [[Academy Award for Best Actor|Best Actor]] for Foxx and [[Academy Award for Best Sound|Best Sound Mixing]]. Foxx also won Best Actor at the [[62nd Golden Globe Awards|Golden Globe]], [[58th British Academy Film Awards|BAFTA]], [[11th Screen Actors Guild Awards|Screen Actors Guild]], and [[10th Critics' Choice Awards|Critics' Choice]] becoming the second actor to win all five major lead actor awards for the same performance, and the only one to win the Golden Globe in the [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy|Musical or Comedy]] category, rather than in [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama|Drama]].
Charles had planned to attend a screening of the completed film but died of liver disease in June 2004, four months prior to the premiere.<ref name="MusicLegendRay">{{cite web |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/music-legend-ray-charles-dies-73-wbna5182959 |title=Music legend Ray Charles dies at 73 |agency=Associated Press |date=October 10, 2004 |access-date=August 31, 2013}}</ref>
{{TOClimit|3}}
==Plot==
<!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, the plot summary should be 400-700 words. -->
Ray Charles Robinson is raised in poverty in [[Florida]] by his mother, Aretha. Learning to play piano at an early age, Ray is haunted by the accidental death of his younger brother George, who drowns in their mother's washbasin. Ray loses his vision by age seven and becomes completely blind. Aretha teaches him to be independent, eventually sending him to a school for the deaf and blind.
In 1946, Ray joins a white country band and wears sunglasses to hide his damaged eyes. Two years later, he travels to [[Seattle]] and joins a nightclub band, though the club's owner demands sexual favors and controls his money and career. After discovering he is being exploited, Ray signs his own record deal and leaves the band. Touring on the [[Chitlin' Circuit]] as "Ray Charles", he is introduced to [[heroin]].
Ray is discovered by [[Ahmet Ertegun]] of [[Atlantic Records]] and records his first hit with Ertegun's song "[[Mess Around]]". In [[Houston]], Ray falls in love with Della Bea, a preacher's daughter. Though she and others are unhappy about Ray mixing [[gospel music|gospel]] with his music, he marries Della and continues to gain fame with "[[I Got a Woman]]" and "[[Hallelujah I Love Her So]]".
A pregnant Della finds Ray's drug kit and confronts him. They reconcile after the birth of their first child, but Ray begins an affair with singer [[Mary Ann (Ray Charles song)|Mary Anne Fisher]]. In 1956, as Ray's popularity grows, he hires a trio to become "[[The Raelettes]]" and immediately falls for lead singer [[Margie Hendrix]]. They begin their own affair, and a jealous Mary Anne leaves.
Margie asks Ray to let her try heroin, but he orders her to stay away from it. His producers recognize his now-complete addiction as he presents symptoms while recording "[[Night Time Is the Right Time]]" on a new electric piano, but despite their concern they recognize his genius and his recording career continues.
A few years later, when Ray's band finishes a set early and the club's owner demands they play the remaining time, Ray performs "[[What'd I Say]]" on the spot. His popularity rises through the 1950s and he moves his family to [[Los Angeles]] but continues to use heroin, straining his relationships with Della and Margie. In 1960, he signs a better contract with [[ABC Records]], negotiating to own his [[mastering (audio)|master tapes]].
Ray continues to develop his music, recording such hits as "[[Georgia on My Mind]]". Margie reveals she is pregnant, and cuts off their affair when Ray demands she end the pregnancy. He writes "[[Hit the Road Jack]]" with a solo by Margie, who uses her newfound recognition to embark on a solo career, while Ray struggles with his addiction.
In 1961, Ray encounters civil rights protestors outside his concert in [[Augusta, Georgia]]. Deciding not to play at the segregated venue, he cancels the concert and is banned from playing in Georgia. After he allows black and white audience members to dance together onstage during a concert in [[Indianapolis]], his hotel room is raided by police. His arrest for heroin possession is made public, to Della's dismay, but his record label has the charges dismissed.
In [[St. Louis]], Ray performs the country-influenced "[[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" and is impressed by announcer [[Joe Adams (actor)|Joe Adams]], who joins his tour. Ray moves his family to [[Beverly Hills]], and learns that Margie has died of an overdose. Joe alienates Ray's band and his longtime friend and manager Jeff Brown, whom Ray fires, for stealing.
In 1965, Ray returns from a concert in [[Montreal]] and is again arrested for heroin possession. Dismissing his excuses, Della pleads with him to overcome his habit, and he is sentenced to [[drug rehabilitation]]. Suffering vivid nightmares during withdrawal, Ray learns to play chess with Dr. Hacker and Hacker explains to him that his lawyer's arguments with the judge agreed to probation in Boston under the condition that he completes his drug rehab program and agrees to take periodic drug tests. Ray has a vision of George and their mother, who, while praising the fact he became a success, chastises him for letting his addictions cripple him, with George telling Ray that his death was not his fault.
By 1979, Ray has permanently quit heroin and receives an official apology from the state of [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], which names "Georgia On My Mind" the official state song. Ray goes on to have a long and successful career as a world-famous entertainer until his death in 2004.
==Cast==
<!--- Cast per tombstone opening credits and order, roles per closing credits scroll --->
{{div col}}
* [[
** [[
* [[
* [[Clifton Powell]] as Jeff Brown
* [[Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor|Aunjanue Ellis]] as Mary Ann Fisher
* [[Harry Lennix]] as [[Joe Adams (actor)|Joe Adams]]
* [[Terrence Howard]] as Gossie McKee
* [[Larenz Tate]] as [[Quincy Jones]]
* [[Bokeem Woodbine]] as [[David "Fathead" Newman|Fathead Newman]]
* [[Sharon Warren]] as Aretha Robinson
* [[Curtis Armstrong]] as [[Ahmet Ertegun]] of [[Atlantic Records]]
* [[Richard Schiff]] as [[Jerry Wexler]]
* [[
* [[Chris Thomas King]] as [[Lowell Fulson]]
* [[David Krumholtz]] as Milt Shaw
* [[
* [[Warwick Davis]] as Oberon
* [[
* [[
* [[Denise Dowse]] as Marlene Andre
* [[Regina King]] as [[Margie Hendrix|Margie Hendricks]]
* [[Rick Gomez]] as [[Tom Dowd]]
{{div col end}}
==
The film's production was entirely financed by [[Philip Anschutz]], through his [[Bristol Bay Productions]] company.<ref name="Denver">{{cite news |last1=Jefferson |first1=Elana Ashanti |title=Anschutz recognized for financing "Ray" |url=https://www.denverpost.com/2005/11/05/anschutz-recognized-for-financing-ray/ |access-date=22 November 2023 |work=Denver Post |date=November 5, 2005}}</ref><ref name="CNN">{{cite news |last1=Leonard |first1=Devin |title=The Passion of Philip Anschutz |url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/05/01/8375424/index.htm |access-date=22 November 2023 |work=CNN |date=April 16, 2006}}</ref> Taylor Hackford said that it took 15 years to make the film;<ref name="DVD" /> or more specifically, as he later clarified in the liner notes of the soundtrack album, this is how long it took him to secure the financing.<ref>{{cite AV media|title=Ray liner notes |type=album |publisher=Rhino/Wea UK |year=2004}}</ref> It was made on a budget of $40 million.
Charles was given a [[Braille]] copy of the film's original script; he objected only to a scene showing him taking up piano grudgingly, and a scene implying that Charles had shown mistress and lead "Raelette" Margie Hendricks how to shoot [[heroin]].<ref name="MusicLegendRay" />
Hackford originally had the idea of using a stunt double to make it look like Foxx was playing the piano but was shocked to find out that he went to college on a classical piano scholarship.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Seibold |first1=Witney |title=Jamie Foxx's Piano Skills Were A Blessing And A Curse While Playing Ray Charles|url=https://www.slashfilm.com/1277375/jamie-foxx-piano-skills-blessing-curse-playing-ray-charles/ |website=Slash Film |date=May 7, 2023 |access-date=23 January 2024}}</ref> Foxx does not sing as Charles with exception to cover versions Charles performs in his earlier years.<ref name="DVD" /> [[Kanye West]] and [[Ludacris]] have since made songs with Foxx singing as Charles in their songs "[[Gold Digger (Kanye West song)|Gold Digger]]" and "[[Georgia (Field Mob and Ludacris song)|Georgia]]", respectively. Instead of studying Ray Charles in person, Foxx watched old video footage of him to authentically recreate the vibe of Ray Charles when he was a lot younger. Foxx also shot the majority of the film blind as he used prosthetics to cover his eyes.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Universal Pictures |title=Ray Charles and Jamie Foxx - Stepping Into The Part (2004) |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2znPxfx7vo |website=YouTube |date=January 26, 2022 |access-date=23 January 2024}}</ref>
Hackford stated that while Anschutz agreed to finance the film, he demanded that it be PG-13, which caused Hackford to walk away from the film twice.<ref name="Goldstein">{{cite news |last1=Goldstein |first1=Patrick |date=November 3, 2004 |title=The soul of 'Ray' |work=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-nov-03-et-ray3-story.html |access-date=22 November 2023}}</ref> Because Charles and [[Ahmet Ertegun]] asked him to make the movie, he agreed to do the film as a PG-13 rating. The film was rated PG-13 for "depiction of drug addiction, sexuality and some thematic elements".
Hackford stated that no studio was interested in backing the movie.<ref name="DVD" /> After it was shot independently, Universal Pictures stepped in to distribute it.<ref name="Goldstein" /> Part of the reason Universal Pictures released it was because one of its executives used to hitchhike to Ray Charles concerts.
The film's score was composed by [[Craig Armstrong (composer)|Craig Armstrong]]. ''Ray'' debuted at the [[2004 Toronto International Film Festival]].<ref name="Premiere">{{cite news |last1=Kilday |first1=Gregg |title=Toronto Flashback: Jamie Foxx Hit a High Note at TIFF With 'Ray' |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/toronto-flashback-jamie-foxx-ray-1235584661/ |access-date=22 November 2023 |work=The Hollywood Reporter |date=2023-09-28}}</ref>
==Soundtrack==
{{Main|Ray (soundtrack)}}
==Reception==
===Box office===
''Ray'' was released in theaters on October 29, 2004. The film went on to become a box-office hit, earning $75 million in the U.S. with an additional $50 million internationally, bringing its worldwide gross to $125 million.<ref name="BOM" />
===Critical response===
On [[Rotten Tomatoes]], the film holds an approval rating of 79% based on 206 reviews, with an average rating of 7.30/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "An engrossing and energetic portrait of a great musician's achievements and foibles, ''Ray'' is anchored by Jamie Foxx's stunning performance as Ray Charles."<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ray (2004) |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/ray |website=[[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date=2025-03-11 }}</ref> On [[Metacritic]] the film has a weighted average score of 73 out of 100, based on 40 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".<ref>{{cite web |title=Ray |url=https://www.metacritic.com/movie/ray |website=[[Metacritic]] |access-date=2020-05-04 }}</ref> Audiences surveyed by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film a rare "A+" grade.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2011-08-11 |first= Pamela |last=McClintock |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/why-cinemascore-matters-box-office-225563 |title=Why CinemaScore Matters for Box Office |website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |access-date=2020-09-09 }}</ref>
[[Roger Ebert]] of the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' wrote: "The movie would be worth seeing simply for the sound of the music and the sight of Jamie Foxx performing it. That it looks deeper and gives us a sense of the man himself is what makes it special." Ebert gave it a full 4 out of 4 stars.<ref>{{cite web |date=October 28, 2004 |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |title=Ray movie review & film summary (2004) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/ray-2004 |website=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] }}{{Rating|4|4}}</ref> [[Richard Corliss]] of [[Time (magazine)|''Time'']] praised the cast, saying "If there were an Oscar for ensemble acting, Ray would win in a stroll."<ref>{{cite magazine |date=12 October 2004 |first=Richard |last=Corliss |author-link=Richard Corliss |title=A Ray of Light on a Blue Genius |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,713188,00.html |magazine=Time }}</ref> Peter Travers of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' wrote: "Jamie Foxx gets so far inside the man and his music that he and Ray Charles seem to breathe as one."<ref>{{cite magazine |date=20 October 2004 |last=Travers |first=Peter |author-link=Peter Travers |title=Ray |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/movie-reviews/ray-124886/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] }}{{Rating|3.5|4}}</ref>
According to music critic [[Robert Christgau]], "Foxx does the impossible—radiates something approaching the charisma of the artist he's portraying... that's the only time an actor has ever brought a pop icon fully to life on-screen."<ref>{{cite news |last=Christgau |first=Robert |author-link=Robert Christgau |date=July 5, 2005 |url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/rock/useless-05.php |title=All This Useless Beauty |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |___location=New York |access-date=March 25, 2013 }}</ref>
===Related projects===
In the wake of his performance as Charles in the film, Foxx featured on hip-hop songs that sampled Charles' songs:
* [[Georgia (Field Mob and Ludacris song)|''Georgia'']] by [[Ludacris]] also featuring [[Field Mob]], which samples ''Georgia on My Mind''.
* [[Gold Digger (Kanye West song)|''Gold Digger'']] by [[Kanye West]], which samples ''I Got a Woman''.
==Awards==
{{Anchor|Awards|Accolades}}
{{Main|List of accolades received by Ray (film)}}
==Historical accuracy ==
The film's credits state that ''Ray'' is based on true events, but includes some characters, names, locations, and events which have been changed and others which have been "fictionalized for dramatization purposes." Examples of the fictionalized scenes include:
* The film's portrayal of Charles' brother George's death in 1935 shows him drowning in a metal tub after Ray does not attempt to rescue him because he assumes he is just playing; Ray's mother then discovers George drowning when calling the boys in for dinner. Though George did drown in a metal tub, Ray did try to pull him out, but was unable to do so due to George's large body weight;<ref name=raybro>{{cite web|url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=5707|title=Charles, Ray (1930–2004) – HistoryLink.org|website=historylink.org}}</ref> Ray then ran inside to tell his mother what happened.<ref name=raybro />
* Throughout the film, it is suggested that Ray's depression and heroin addiction were fueled by nervous breakdowns he had over the deaths of both George and his mother, as well as his blindness. In reality, the death of his mother was a factoring cause of his nervous breakdown, and was thought to be a leading cause of his depression.<ref name=ipppav /> However, the death of George and Charles' blindness did not lead to nervous breakdowns.<ref name=ipppav>{{cite journal|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/life_and_art/2004/10/its_a_shame_about_ray.html|title=It's a Shame About Ray|first=David|last=Ritz|date=22 October 2004|journal=Slate}}</ref>
* It is true that Charles kicked his heroin addiction after undergoing treatment in a psychiatric hospital during 1965, as stated towards the end of the film. However, it is not mentioned that he would often use gin and marijuana as substitutes for heroin throughout much of the remaining years of his life.<ref name=ipppav /><ref name=raygugeor />
* In the scene in which "[[What'd I Say]]" is being played, Charles is depicted as playing a [[Rhodes piano|Fender Rhodes electric piano]], but in reality, he used a [[Wurlitzer electric piano]] on the original recording and began using it on tour in 1956, because he did not trust the tuning and quality of the pianos provided to him at every venue.<ref name="evans109">Evans, p. 109.{{Title missing|date=November 2023}}</ref>
* In the film, when his backing singer and mistress Margie Hendricks informs Ray she is pregnant with his child, Ray suggests she should have an abortion, out of loyalty to Della. Margie decides to keep the baby, and soon leaves Ray to pursue a separate singing career after he refuses to abandon his family, move in with her and welcome the baby into his life. In reality, Hendricks did conceive a child with Charles and abandoned him after he refused to leave Della, but Charles never asked her to have an abortion, and welcomed any child he conceived, whether from Della or any other mistress, into his personal life.<ref name=raygugeor />
*In the film Margie leaves the Raelettes in 1961, but in reality she was fired from the group by Ray in 1964 after a heated argument.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2020-09-02|title=A Lover's Blues: The Unforgettable Voice of Margie Hendrix|url=https://longreads.com/2020/09/02/a-lovers-blues-margie-hendrix/|last=Ngangura|first=Tari|access-date=2021-05-16|website=Longreads|language=en}}</ref>
* In the scene in which Charles is about to enter a segregated music hall in Augusta, Georgia, in 1961, a group of civil rights activists protesting just outside the hall successfully persuade him not to perform. Charles declares that he will no longer perform in segregated public facilities, and in response, the Georgia state legislature passes a resolution banning Charles from ever performing again in the state. In reality, a group of civil rights activists did successfully persuade Charles to reject this invitation, but the advice came in the form of a telegram rather than a street protest;<ref name="raygugeor" /> Charles also did make up for the gig later, and was never banned from performing in Georgia and still accepted invitations to perform at segregated public facilities.<ref name="raygugeor">{{cite web |last=Schultz |first=Cathy |title="Some False Notes in Ray's Accuracy" |url=http://www.stfrancis.edu/content/historyinthemovies/ray.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160924184858/http://www.stfrancis.edu/content/historyinthemovies/ray.htm |archive-date=24 September 2016 |website=History in the Movies}}</ref>
* In the film, [[Margie Hendrix|Margie Hendricks]] dies in 1964, and it was stated the death was caused by drug overdose. However, in reality she died on July 14, 1973, but no official cause of death was determined because an autopsy was not performed.<ref>{{cite book|last=Clemente |first=John |title=Girl Groups: Fabulous Females Who Rocked the World |year=2013 |publisher= AuthorHouse |isbn=978-1477281284 |page=133 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=irlCnQEACAAJ}}</ref>
* During the final scene in the film, when Charles' version of "[[Georgia on My Mind]]" becomes Georgia's state song, Charles is congratulated by his wife Della, and a resolution is also passed to lift the lifetime ban he had received in 1961 after he declared he would no longer perform at segregated public facilities. In reality, by the time "Georgia on My Mind" became Georgia's state song in 1979, Charles and Della had already divorced, so she was not present when Charles performed at the Georgia State Legislature;<ref name="raygugeor" /> and since he had never been banned from performing in Georgia in the first place, no such resolution was ever passed.<ref name="raygugeor" />
==Notes==
{{notelist}}
==
{{Reflist}}
==External links==
{{
* {{IMDb title|0350258|Ray}}
* {{
{{Ray Charles}}
{{Taylor Hackford}}
{{Navboxes
|title = [[List of accolades received by Ray (film)|Awards for ''Ray'']]
|list =
{{AARP Movies for Grownups Award for Best Movie for Grownups}}
{{Black Reel Award for Outstanding Film}}
{{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture}}
}}
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[[Category:American independent films]]
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[[Category:Films featuring a Best Actor Academy Award–winning performance]]
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