Film

Bessie

Name: Bessie
Genre: Drama, Music, TV Movie
Released: 2015
Cast: Queen Latifah, Mo'Nique, Mike Epps, Tika Sumpter, Michael Kenneth Williams

Bessie is a biographical drama centered on the legendary blues singer who dominated the 1920s and '30s. Queen Latifah gives a forceful, commanding performance as Smith navigates fame, racism, poverty, and personal turmoil. It's a film about artistic transcendence and the price paid for it—intimate and furious by turns, deeply felt rather than polished.

TMDb rating

3.2

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you want a music biopic that lingers on the performances themselves, where a singer's voice carries the scenes and the rivalries between performers feel as tense as the songs.

Skip it if you want a tightly plotted story with a clear arc, since this is a TV movie that wanders through a career in episodic stretches and can feel rushed.

What it asks of you: Expect a little under two hours at an unhurried pace, with much of the running time given to song and conversation rather than quick plot turns.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Lady Sings the Blues1972

Diana Ross as Billie Holiday in a richly mounted biopic of another jazz legend shaped by trauma and brilliance. The film has similar emotional weight and a phenomenal lead performance that echoes Latifah's intensity.

But It's a 1970s production that sometimes favours myth over nuance, and the pacing can feel leisurely by modern standards.

Dreamgirls2006

A sweeping story of Black women in the music industry navigating ambition, betrayal, and survival from the 1960s onward. Operatic in scope but grounded in real power struggles and emotional devastation.

But It's a stage adaptation, which means big emotions and theatrical numbers—that register won't suit everyone, and the runtime is substantial.

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom2020

Viola Davis as another blues pioneer, filmed during a single day in a recording studio. Like Bessie, it's about an imperious woman artist reclaiming her worth and legacy against systemic racism.

But It's deliberately confined and dialogue-heavy, with minimal plot movement—more like a play than a conventional drama.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Bessie

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

American Gangster2007

Both are about extraordinary Black figures who refuse subordination, using intelligence and force of personality to dominate their domains during eras when the system was designed to crush them.

Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas, a man building an empire through ruthlessness and will during the same era Bessie Smith lived. A different genre entirely—a crime epic—but structured around the same question: what does it cost to seize power?

But It's violent and morally murky, and Frank's story celebrates ambition in ways Bessie's doesn't. If you want heroes, this isn't it.

I Will Follow2010

An intimate portrait of a Black woman (Salli Richardson-Whitfield) grieving her mother's death and reclaiming her own voice. Quieter than Bessie but similarly attuned to resilience and generational pain.

But It's deliberately slow and meditative, which can feel static if you're expecting narrative momentum.

Respect2021

Jennifer Hudson as Aretha Franklin, tracing her rise from gospel and trauma to becoming the Queen of Soul. Another film about a towering artist reclaiming power on her own terms.

But It's occasionally heavy-handed with its messaging, and the middle section lags under the weight of its own earnestness.

Ray2004

Jamie Foxx as Ray Charles, a biopic that doesn't shy from his flaws while celebrating his artistry and innovation. Similar structure—life in music, personal reckoning, triumph and cost.

But At nearly two and a half hours, it's a considerable commitment, and some sections feel more like a greatest-hits compilation than narrative flow.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday2021

Andra Day as Holiday during her persecution by federal agents. A tighter, more focused biopic about an artist under siege—politically urgent in a way Bessie also understands.

But The framing device feels occasionally forced, and some viewers may find the repeated indignities exhausting rather than illuminating.

The United States vs. Billie Holiday poster

Moonlight2016

A poetic, lyrical meditation on Black identity and self-discovery across three decades. It shares Bessie's emotional intelligence and refusal to explain or simplify its characters' inner lives.

But It's formally experimental and emotionally oblique—if you need narrative clarity and resolution, this will frustrate you.

Minari2021

A family story about ambition, sacrifice, and cultural displacement with tremendous emotional depth. Like Bessie, it's about people fighting for dignity in an indifferent system.

But It's understated to the point of quietness, and there's no cathartic moment—just earned, humble grace.

Stormy Weather1943

A document of the same world, same era, same performers—but seen from the industry's perspective rather than the artist's. Watching them together shows what got hidden and what couldn't be.

A 1943 musical with Lena Horne, Bill 'Bojangles' Robinson, and the Nicholas Brothers—sumptuous entertainment that documents the era Bessie Smith helped define. It's what the music industry allowed Black performers to show the world.

But It's a studio product designed to entertain, not interrogate. The film glosses over exactly the struggles and injustices that Bessie highlights.

Godfather of Harlem2019

Like Bessie, it's about a Black figure reclaiming power and narrative in their own time and place—but told across seasons, allowing for the kind of nuanced exploration that transforms biography into epic.

A prestige crime drama set in 1960s Harlem with Forest Whitaker as Bumpy Johnson, reclaiming the neighborhood's history from outside narratives. Episodic format gives it room to explore power, identity, and legacy in ways a two-hour film can't.

But It's a Netflix prestige drama with all the attendant polish and violence. If you're fatigued by slick true-crime storytelling, the sheen may feel exploitative.