Cast as Black Panther in the Marvel Cineamtic Universe, Chadwick Boseman is one of tomorrow's big stars, and although he's been on the rise for a while, the real turning point was Get On Up. Managing to portray James Brown over five decades with ease, Boseman's take on The Godfather of Soul feels authentic throughout, the make-up never getting in the way as it did for Idris Elba as Mandela last year. When Boseman turns to the camera in one of the fourth wall-breaking moments, it's hard to not think you're actually watching Brown. Outside of Boseman, however, Get On Up is far less engaging. For all its subject's uniqueness, the story feels like something you've seen countless times before; the overarching narrative of the film is The Buddy Holly Story followed by any drugged-up, ego-driven rock star biopic. There are attempts to pepper the movie with funk, but they're too sporadic to give it as much character as its star; the fourth wall turns are underused, never allowing the film to come across as James Brown himself showing you his life, while the semi-non-chronological order serves to only artificially create emotion, highlighting what could have otherwise been subtle parallels.
