As reported by Variety, Aretha Franklin has filed a lawsuit to prevent the release of Amazing Grace, a documentary about her. The film was supposed to play at the Toronto Film Festival and the Chicago Film Festival, but it has been pulled from both in light of this legal dispute. In a statement released by the Toronto Film Festival, a representative referred to Amazing Grace as an “extraordinary piece of art” and “truly a cinematic treasure of 20th century music.” Oddly, Variety doesn’t really spell out what Franklin’s issue with the film is, but the article implies that the movie uses footage filmed by director Sydney Pollack—who died in 2008—that Franklin didn’t authorize the release of. Variety also adds that producer Alan Elliott “labored to corral” this Pollack footage into “a film,” so it sounds like this documentary is just an excuse to put out some clips of Franklin performing that people haven’t seen before, despite the fact that she apparently didn’t want anyone to see them. Either way, nobody’s going to see it anytime soon.
Join the discussion...