Princess of R&B can’t even rely on Aaliyah’s forward-thinking R&B tunes to save it the singer’s family declined to license her biggest hits, so the performance scenes are fudged with Shipp singing Bobby Brown’s ‘My Prerogative’, Vanessa Williams’ ‘Save The Best For Last’ and a couple of dull covers of Aaliyah’s own songs. Because the film never really shows Aaliyah having to sweat for anything – her multi-platinum albums, her movie roles, her fancy New York apartment – it’s hard to care whenever she achieves something remarkable. In her prime, Aaliyah made singing and dancing seem effortless, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t work to hone her craft. The whole thing totally fails to show why Aaliyah was ‘More Than A Woman’ A more accurate description might be: “They gloss over it.” Kelly is seen getting a telling off from his underage bride’s parents, but after that he’s essentially let off the hook, and there’s no suggestion the pair ever did anything more unsavoury together than get to second base.
R Kelly reportedly married Aaliyah when she was just 15, a disturbing incident the film’s executive producer, Wendy Williams, reckons Princess Of R&B handles in a “tasteful” way. Because it rushes so much, the film fails to linger long enough on the pivotal moments in Aaliyah’s incredibly impressive career. One minute she’s having a meeting about starring in a high-profile movie, the next she’s walking the red carpet at the Romeo Must Die premiere. One minute she’s discussing the possibility of recording a film theme the next she’s coming off stage after singing at the Oscars. One minute it’s 1989 and Aaliyah is getting a pep talk from Auntie Gladys (Knight, that is), the next it’s 1991 and she’s signing a record deal.
Aaliyah packed a lot into her tragically short life, but Princess Of R&B is so keen to get to the finish mark, it doesn’t let us see it.
OK, not so much back… just forth, forth and forth again. To be fair to Shipp, she only took on the role after original star Zendaya dropped out, but this is still a flat and unconvincing depiction of an influential and still popular artist during the performance scenes, Shipp captures as much of Aaliyah’s natural stage presence as a blurry gif could. Up close, she looks nothing like the late chanteuse, and doesn’t sing or dance like her, either. At times, the film’s star Alexandra Shipp manages to pass for Aaliyah – but only from a distance, while rocking a pair of 90s-style shades.
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