“Get on Up” is a dramatization of the life of legendary performer James Brown—from being abandoned as young boy to discovering his talent for music, breaking the rules of the music business and growing into a legendary music icon. The film explores the ups and downs in the life of this extraordinary man.

Lead actor Chadwick Boseman provides an amazing performance as the Godfather of Soul. Whether he’s playing 16 or 60, Boseman makes you forget he’s an actor, and you feel like you are watching James Brown himself on screen. The actor has perfectly nailed the voice, mannerisms, singing and iconic dance moves, while also delivering an emotional performance.

Also giving a wonderful dramatic performance is Nelsan Ellis as Brown’s right-hand-man Bobby Byrd—he is almost unrecognizable as his character is so different from his role as Lafayette on True Blood. And the rest of the cast is filled will talented actors such as Jill Scott, Viola Davis, Dan Aykroyd and Octavia Spencer.

The film combines humor and drama with some spectacular musical performances, all beautifully re-created on screen. While I enjoyed the unfolding drama of Brown’s life story, I found the way it was edited a bit odd and confusing at times. Instead of telling a linear story, the film constantly jumps backwards and forwards in time, sometimes somewhat jarringly, leaving you a bit unsure of what you are watching. The film also has James Brown erratically breaking the fourth wall and narrating to the camera. While these moments can be quite fun, the inconsistant use of this technique makes the scenes feel like the director changed his mind at some point on how to tell this story. That said, I did find the overall story of the hardships and highlights in Brown’s life to be quite fascinating.

The Blu-ray Combo Pack comes loaded with special features, which include 15 minutes of deleted/extended/alternate scenes, direct access to the musical performances, 40 minutes of interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, almost 7 minutes of hilarious raw footage of Allison Janney and John Benjamin Hickey dancing, and an audio commentary by the film’s director. The package also includes DVD, Ultraviolet and Digital Copies of the film.

What’s Included:

Film: (2:18:50)

Blu-ray:
• 1080p / Widescreen 1.85:1
• Audio: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Spanish DTS Digital Surround 5.1, French DTS Digital Surround 5.1, English DVS 2.0
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

DVD:

• 480p / Widescreen 1.85:1
• Audio: English Dolby Digital 5.1, English DVS 2.0, French Dolby Digital 5.1, Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
• Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

Digital Copy (For redemption deadline see NBCUcodes.com):

• UltraViolet DigitalHD Copy redeemable via Universal, Flixster, Vudu, Target Ticket or CinemaNow
• Digital Copy redeemable via iTunes or Windows Media

Extras (* Blu-ray only):

• Deleted/Extended/Alternate Scenes * (15:03)
  Play All or select from “Joe & Susie Fight”, “Meeting Mick Jagger”, “Alone in the Woods”, “Parole Board”, “Big Junior’s Lesson”, “Awake to the Brothel”, “Push the Car to Money”, “Olympia Backstage #1 – Ready Mr. Brown”, “Olympia Backstage #2 – Groove Fine”, and “Jailhouse Epiphany”.
• Full Song Performances *
  Watch selected song performances from the film—”Out of Sight” (2:38), “Steal Away (Steal Away To Jesus)” (1:39), “I’ll Go Crazy” (2:20) and “Cold Sweat” (2:47).
• Extended Song Performances *
  Watch selected song performances from the film—”‘Please, Please Please’ – Recording Session & Montage” (4:09), “‘Please, Please, Please’ – Live Performance” (1:52) and “Say it Loud I’m Black and I’m Proud” (1:26).
• Long Journey to the Screen (3:48)
  Producers Brian Grazer, Mick Jagger, Erica Huggins and Victoria Pearman, and director Tate Taylor discuss the 14-year journey it took to make this James Brown biopic.
• Chadwick Boseman: Meet Mr. James Brown (11:25)
  Producers Mick Jagger, Brian Grazer and Victoria Pearman and director Tate Taylor talk about the difficult process of casting James Brown. Actor Chadwick Boseman talks about taking on such a challenging and iconic role. Also includes interviews with choreographer Aakomon Jones and actors Nelsan Ellis (“Bobby Bird”), Octavia Spencer (“Aunt Honey”), Craig Robinson (“Maceo Parker”), Dan Aykroyd (“Ben Bart”), Viola Davis (“Susie Brown”) and Jill Scott (“DeeDee Brown”).
• The Get On Up Family (6:27)
  Director/Producer Tate Taylor, producers Erica Huggins, Victoria Pearman and Brian Grazer, and star Chadwick Boseman (“James Brown”) talk about the talented supporting cast. Also includes behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with actors Octavia Spencer, Viola Davis, Nelsan Ellis, Dan Aykroyd, Jill Scott
• On Stage with the Hardest Working Man * (6:25)
  The cast, creators and other musicians talk about James Brown’s stage presence, and what it was like re-creating his performances. Includes behind-the-scenes footage from the performance sequences and interviews with director Tate Taylor, producer Brian Grazer, actors Chadwick Boseman and Dan Aykroyd, production designer Mark Ricker, choreographer Aakomon Jones, and musicians Ice Cube and Mick Jagger.
• The Founding Father of Funk * (13:19)
  The cast, creators and other musicians talk about their first experiences with James Brown, and the singer’s legacy. Includes interviews with director/Producer Tate Taylor, producer Brian Grazer, actors Jill Scott, Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Dan Aykroyd, Aloe Blacc (“Narfloyd Scott”) and Octavia Spencer, and musicians Ice Cube, Pharrell Williams, Cee Lo Green, and Mick Jagger.
• Tate Taylor’s Master Class (6:57)
  The long, uncut take of Allison Janney and John Benjamin Hickey dancing in the bar to James Brown’s music. The actors have a lot of fun and get quite risqué by the end.
• Feature Commentary (2:18:50)
  Director/Producer Tate Taylor provides an interesting audio commentary for the film. He gives a lot of behind-the-scenes tidbits about each scene—the locations, sets, and actors involved—as well as his editing decisions throughout the film. Taylor also provides historical context for the events as they are portrayed in the film.

Final Thoughts:

Get on Up is an interesting and entertaining dramatization of life of legendary musician James Brown. The film features some amazing dramatic and musical performance, all of which is captured beautifully on this Blu-ray. While I found the movie to be a bit too long, and the editing a bit erratic, I still really enjoyed the film overall. The Blu-ray looks and sounds great, and contains a solid selection of bonus features as well as DVD, Ultraviolet and Digital Copies of the film, giving you many viewing options. So Get on Up and check out this Blu-ray!