Ray
Born on a sharecropping plantation in Northern Florida, Ray Charles went blind at seven. Inspired by a fiercely independent mom who insisted he make his own way, He found his calling and his gift behind a piano keyboard. Touring across the Southern musical circuit, the soulful singer gained a reputation and then exploded with worldwide fame when he pioneered coupling gospel and country together.
What critics thought
Jamie Foxx's transformation into Ray Charles is the film's undisputed center of gravity — critics who found the biopic formulaic in structure still tended to concede that his performance elevates it past its conventions. The broader ensemble and the music sequences drew consistent praise, though the film's willingness to go deep on Charles's darker personal struggles divided viewers on whether it truly illuminates the man or just checks the boxes of the prestige music biopic.
“The movie would be worth seeing simply for the sound of the music and the sight of Jamie Foxx performing it. That it looks deeper and gives us a sense of the man himself is what makes it special.”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“If there were an Oscar for ensemble acting, Ray would win in a stroll.”
Richard Corliss·Time
“Jamie Foxx gets so far inside the man and his music that he and Ray Charles seem to breathe as one.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
Accolades
Genres
Biography, Drama, Music
Cast & Crew
Taylor HackfordDirector
Jamie FoxxRay Charles
Kerry WashingtonDella Bea Robinson
Regina KingMargie Hendricks
Harry LennixJoe Adams
Clifton PowellJeff Brown
Bokeem WoodbineFathead Newman
Curtis ArmstrongAhmet Ertegun
Richard SchiffJerry Wexler
Larenz TateQuincy Jones
Terrence HowardGossie McGee
Craig ArmstrongComposer
Paweł EdelmanCinematographyRay
Born on a sharecropping plantation in Northern Florida, Ray Charles went blind at seven. Inspired by a fiercely independent mom who insisted he make his own way, He found his calling and his gift behind a piano keyboard. Touring across the Southern musical circuit, the soulful singer gained a reputation and then exploded with worldwide fame when he pioneered coupling gospel and country together.
What critics thought
Jamie Foxx's transformation into Ray Charles is the film's undisputed center of gravity — critics who found the biopic formulaic in structure still tended to concede that his performance elevates it past its conventions. The broader ensemble and the music sequences drew consistent praise, though the film's willingness to go deep on Charles's darker personal struggles divided viewers on whether it truly illuminates the man or just checks the boxes of the prestige music biopic.
“The movie would be worth seeing simply for the sound of the music and the sight of Jamie Foxx performing it. That it looks deeper and gives us a sense of the man himself is what makes it special.”
Roger Ebert·Chicago Sun-Times
“If there were an Oscar for ensemble acting, Ray would win in a stroll.”
Richard Corliss·Time
“Jamie Foxx gets so far inside the man and his music that he and Ray Charles seem to breathe as one.”
Peter Travers·Rolling Stone
Accolades
Genres
Biography, Drama, Music
Cast & Crew
Taylor HackfordDirectorJamie FoxxRay CharlesKerry WashingtonDella Bea RobinsonRegina KingMargie HendricksHarry LennixJoe AdamsClifton PowellJeff BrownBokeem WoodbineFathead NewmanCurtis ArmstrongAhmet ErtegunRichard SchiffJerry WexlerLarenz TateQuincy JonesTerrence HowardGossie McGeeCraig ArmstrongComposerPaweł EdelmanCinematography