Not surprisingly given Queen Latifah’s involvement, the just-released trailer for Warner Bros.’ upcoming musical comedy “Joyful Noise” looks pretty horrible.
In the film Latifah stars as small-town mother Vi Rose Hill, who is named choir director at her church over the objections of the previous director’s widow G.G. Sparrow (played by country star and sometime actress Dolly Parton), who feels she should’ve been handed the position after her husband’s death. The two women are ultimately forced to team up when budget cuts threaten to shut the choir down, with the annual “Joyful Noise” choir competition offering their one hope for keeping it going.
Let me guess: their choir wins the competition, the program is saved, and Latifah and Parton end up sharing directing duties at the church. There, I’ve just saved you from having to watch the movie.
To be fair, it’s always nice seeing Parton on screen (despite her near-freakish appearance these days), and the film was directed by Todd Graff, who last helmed the critically well-received Vanessa Hudgens vehicle “Bandslam”. Maybe he’s been able to pull off some sort of “Sister Act” miracle here, although given the bargain-basement January 13th release date I have a hard time believing it.
“Joyful Noise” also stars Keke Palmer, Jeremy Jordan, Kris Kristofferson and Courtney B. Vance.