Movies

I'm no fan of Bette Midler, but I was mighty impressed by her first starring role in "The Rose". The Divine Miss M plays Rose, a Janis Joplin-type, living her last days in a sea of sex, booze, and drugs. The movie shows painfully and slowly how her life goes completely out of control, while her friends and management are helpless.Midler, unlike the unbearably long line of singers/rappers/divas/bubblegum pop stars who have done acting, can do both and dominate. Midler's Oscar-nominated performance is awesome, and her singing voice is superb as she belts out the songs with panache. If you want to see her do something else besides the endless comedies she does, check this one out.

Making her film debut, Bette Midler plays a singer loosely based on Janis Joplin. Midler does a very good job in the role, showing the woman making something of herself, but living a self-destructive life to the point where she ruins herself. A particularly eye-popping scene is when she struts through the men's room and the men get all freaked out and start jumping into the pool. You gotta wonder what's with those guys.Equally as good as Midler is Alan Bates as her manager and sometimes lover. "The Rose" is certainly a movie that I recommend, and I believe the director later directed Bette Midler in the equally interesting "For the Boys". Also starring Don Calfa and Doris Roberts.

Loosely based upon the life of Janis Joplin and her struggles with fame and drugs, the Rose stays with the viewer long after the final fadeout. Acting tour-de-forces are manifest everywhere, and although virtually the entire supporting cast brings a Broadway-style truth and urgency that make thus excellent.