Joyful Noise

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Jonathan O Unjoyful religious musical comedy Rated 1/5 Stars •  Rated 1 out of 5 stars 06/28/25 Full Review Audience Member This feels like an afterschool special - has about the depth of a Hallmark Christmas movie. It was an OK movie to watch with older family members. Rated 3/5 Stars •  Rated 3 out of 5 stars 01/16/23 Full Review Audience Member I wouldn’t call Joyful Noise obnoxious or annoying, it’s not coherent enough to earn one of those adjectives. This film is more baffling than anything else. The plot is an absolute mess of nonsense, and it feels like an insane person had a hand in writing it. There are so many moments in this movie where it takes a left turn and starts another subplot out of nowhere, as if Todd Graff (the writer/director) was just sitting there saying “I’ve seen something like this before in a movie, let’s do that.” This movie is so overrun with B-plots, that it feels like they forgot to even have an A-plot. Then there are moments of conflict that come out of nowhere and are resolved by the next scene. Perhaps the most blatant example of the failings of this odd script is the scene where Keke Palmer’s character confronts her mother (played by Queen Latifah) and suggests that her mom is jealous of her because she is beautiful. The rant that Latifah spouts is one of the most hilariously off-the-wall things I’ve ever heard. I was crying because I laughed so hard at that nonsense, and one scene later the two reconcile as if none of that ever happened. (I recommend everyone scout out a youtube video of that speech for just a taste of the nuttiness Joyful Noise delivers.) I’d like to say the music saves this movie, because I am a sucker for a good song even in a wretched film. I will say that the quality of the singing in Joyful Noise is superb, but I was surprised to find the songs themselves so uninspiring. Even the big number at the end is a lackluster medley of songs that didn’t exactly gel into something remarkable. The best songs are actually in the smaller moments when people don’t even have a great reason to be singing. There’s a strange enjoyment I got out of Joyful Noise that is the closest I’ll probably ever come to liking a “so-bad-it’s-good” movie. I could literally write for hours on all the little things going on in this movie and discuss how it handles none of them well. I don’t think someone could construct a movie this bad on purpose, it feels like something that has to start from a sincere desire to make something good, and then you stumble all the way through. I want to be offended as a Christian because Joyful Noise is yet another Christian movie that caters to the lowest-common-denominator and makes believers look bad in the process, but I’m not even sure this was intended to be a Christian film at all. Every message or lesson it may be teaching is incomprehensible, but in a strange way that made it funny. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 08/06/20 Full Review uncle p Story/Screenplay: (2.5/5) Completely forgettable as a musical. The storyline itself was OK, but there wasn't enough of it to fill a two hour feature film. Duration/Tempo: (2.5/5) At 1 hour and 58 minutes, it's a longer than average movie that felt even longer. Cast & Crew: (3/5) Queen Latifah probably delivered the best performance. The rest of the cast was OK. Summary: (2.5/5) The story and cast were mediocre and the film felt long. A thumbs down. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Audience Member Sometimes this is funny when it is trying to be and sometimes it's funny when it is not trying to me. I just want to say to any parents watching this: this is not a healthy mother-daughter dynamic, and if you are treating your child this way you should probably seek professional advice. Rated 1.5/5 Stars •  Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars 02/25/23 Full Review Audience Member While the cast is entertaining...the story is bland and leaks into melodramatic. Rated 2.5/5 Stars •  Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars 01/12/23 Full Review Read all reviews

Joyful Noise

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