''Mr. Soul!'' (stylized as ''Mr. SOUL!'') is a 2018 American documentary film produced, written and directed by documentary filmmaker

Melissa Haizlip Melissa Haizlip is an American film producer, director and writer most notable for her 2018 award winning film, ''Mr. SOUL!''. Haizlip won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Documentary (Television or Motion Picture) for Mr. SOUL ...

. The film was co-produced by Doug Blush and co-directed by

Sam Pollard Sam Pollard may refer to: * Sam Pollard (missionary) (1864-1915) British missionary to China * Sam Pollard (filmmaker) Samuel D. Pollard is an American film director, editor, producer, and screenwriter. His films have garnered numerous awards su ...

. The film tells the story of

Ellis Haizlip Ellis B. Haizlip (September 21, 1929 – January 25, 1991) was an American television and theatrical producer, broadcaster and promoter of African American culture. Haizlip is best known as the creator, producer and host of the television var ...

, the producer and host of ''

SOUL! ''Soul!'' (also stylized in uppercaseC. Gerald Fraser January 30, 1991, ''New York Times''. Accessed online 21 April 2008.) is a performance/variety television program that showcased African American music, dance and literature in the late 1960s ...

'', the music-and-talk program that aired on public television from 1968 to 1973 and aimed at a Black audience. It was released in 2018 and has since received 21 filmmaking awards. Attorney

Chaz Ebert Chaz Ebert (born Charlie Hammel; October 15, 1952) is an American attorney and businesswoman. Early life and education Ebert was born in Chicago to Johnnie Hobbs Hammel and Wiley Hammel Sr. She attended Crane Technical High School in Chicago. S ...

, record executive

Ron Gillyard Ron Gillyard is a record executive with nearly 20 years experience in the entertainment industry. He is a Grammy Award winner. Start in music Gillyard started in the music business as an intern at Columbia Records. He has been employed by Clive ...

, producer and director

Stan Lathan Stan Lathan (born July 8, 1945) is an American television and film director and television producer. He is executive producer and director of BET's ''Real Husbands of Hollywood''. He has produced and directed numerous stand-up comedy specials st ...

, producer Rishi Rajani, producer Stephanie T. Rance, actor

Blair Underwood Blair Erwin Underwood (born August 25, 1964) is an American actor. He made his debut in the 1985 musical film ''Krush Groove'' and from 1987 to 1994 starred as attorney Jonathan Rollins in the NBC legal drama series ''L.A. Law''. Underwood has a ...

and screenwriter, producer and actress

Lena Waithe Lena Waithe (born May 17, 1984) is an American actress, producer, and screenwriter. She is the creator of the Showtime drama series ''The Chi'' (2018–present) and the BET comedy series ''Boomerang'' (2019–20) and '' Twenties'' (2020–prese ...

are the executive producers of the film. In March 2021, it was announced by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts & Sciences that “Show Me Your Soul” was on the 93rd

Oscars The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

shortlist for Best Original Song. On June 6, 2022

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

winning actor

Morgan Freeman Morgan Freeman (born June 1, 1937) is an American actor, director, and narrator. He is known for his distinctive deep voice and various roles in a wide variety of film genres. Throughout his career spanning over five decades, he has received ...

announced that Mr. Soul! won the

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

for Best Documentary.

Synopsis

The film explores the five seasons of SOUL! against the backdrop of a swiftly changing political landscape. The film interweaves archival footage with rare performances and interviews from the SOUL! show, contemporary interviews with guests who appeared on SOUL! a Black women-led crew working behind-the-scenes including Harry Belafonte, Nikki Giovanni, The Last Poets, Ashford & Simpson, Black Ivory, Sonia Sanchez, Carmen De Lavallade, Felipe Luciano, and Ronald Bell of Kool & the Gang. SOUL! gave exposure to popular stars like Stevie Wonder, Wilson Pickett, Al Green and Earth, Wind & Fire and underground artists, including McCoy Tyner and the saxophonist Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and authors like James Baldwin and Toni Morrison, and activists including Kathleen Cleaver of the Black Panther Party and Stokely Carmichael (Kwame Ture). The words of

are taken from interviews, news articles, correspondence and journal entries between 1968 and 1973. Ellis Haizlip's words are voiced by the actor

, who also serves as an executive producer on the film. “The primary purpose of Soul! is neither to educate nor entertain, but to give people a chance to share in the Black experience. The show must do that first. Then it can educate and entertain. Soul! makes Blacks visible in a society where they have been largely invisible.”

1968.

Release

On April 22, 2018, Mr. SOUL! premiered at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival. The film was screened at 50 film festivals in 2018 and 2019 including AFI DOCS, BFI London, Heartland International Film Festival, Hot Docs, Indie Memphis, Martha's Vineyard African American Film Festival, True / False Film Festival, Urbanworld Film Festival, Woodstock Film Festival, and Pan African Film Festival, among others, and won more than 18 awards. On August 28, 2020, Mr. SOUL! was released in limited theaters and virtual cinemas. Mr. SOUL!, made its public television debut on February 22, 2021, on PBS.

HBO Max HBO Max is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Launched in the United States on May 27, 2020, the service is built around the libraries of HBO, Warner Bros., Cartoon Netw ...

announced, Mr. Soul! will premiere on their streaming service on August 1, 2021.

Critical reception

''Mr. Soul!'' has received positive reviews and has rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on critic reviews, summarizing: "''Mr. SOUL!'' aims an overdue spotlight on a groundbreaking chapter in the history of American public television – and the host who helped make it all happen."

End Title Song

"Show Me Your Soul" is the end title song by

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

winners

Lalah Hathaway Eulaulah Donyll "Lalah" Hathaway (born December 16, 1968) is an American singer. In 1990 Hathaway released her first album titled ''Lalah Hathaway''. After releasing another album, titled '' A Moment'' (1994), it debuted at number 34 on the To ...

and

Robert Glasper Robert Andre Glasper (born April 6, 1978) is an American pianist, record producer, songwriter, and musical arranger with a career that bridges several different musical and artistic genres, mostly centered on jazz. To date, Glasper has won fou ...

. The song, which is also written by Hathaway and Glasper along with Muhammad Ayers and Melissa Haizlip was on the shortlist for the

93rd Academy Awards The 93rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released from January 1, 2020, to February 28, 2021, at Union Station in Los Angeles. The ceremony was held on April 25, 2021 ...

in the category of Music (Best Original Song).

Cast

as Voice of

Questlove Ahmir Khalib Thompson (born January 20, 1971), known professionally as Questlove (stylized as ), is an American musician, record producer, disc jockey, filmmaker, music journalist, and actor. He is the drummer and joint frontman (with Black Thou ...

Novella Nelson Novella Christine Nelson (December 17, 1939 – August 31, 2017) was an American actress and singer. She established her career as a singer, both on the off-Broadway and Broadway stage and in cabaret-style locales. Career Starting in 1961, Nels ...

* Carmen De Lavallade * Dr. Loretta Long *

Kathleen Cleaver Kathleen Neal Cleaver (born May 13, 1945) is an American law professor and activist, known for her involvement with the Black Power movement and the Black Panther Party, a political and revolutionary. Early life Juette Kathleen Neal was born ...

* Ronald Bell *

Kool & The Gang Kool & the Gang is an American R&B/soul/funk band formed in Jersey City, New Jersey, in 1964 by brothers Robert "Kool" Bell and Ronald Bell, with Dennis "Dee Tee" Thomas, Robert "Spike" Mickens, Charles Smith, George Brown, and Ricky West. T ...

Melba Moore Beatrice Melba Hill or Beatrice Melba Smith (sources differ) (born October 29, 1945), known by her stage name Melba Moore, is an American singer and actress. Biography Early life and education Moore was born Beatrice Melba Hill or Beatrice Melba ...

Nikki Giovanni Yolande Cornelia "Nikki" Giovanni Jr. (born June 7, 1943) is an American poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. One of the world's most well-known African-American poets,Jane M. Barstow, Yolanda Williams Page (eds)"Nikki Giovanni" ''E ...

Ashford & Simpson Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting-production team and recording duo of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946). Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carolina, ...

Sonia Sanchez Sonia Sanchez (born Wilsonia Benita Driver; September 9, 1934) is an American poet, writer, and professor. She was a leading figure in the Black Arts Movement and has written over a dozen books of poetry, as well as short stories, critical essay ...

Felipe Luciano Felipe Luciano (born 1947, East Harlem, New York City) is a poet, community activist, journalist, media personality, and politician. He is of Afro-Puerto Rican heritage. He is known for his significant involvement in both the Young Lords Party an ...

* Louis J. Massiah * Black Ivory *

Alvin F. Poussaint Alvin Francis Poussaint, M.D. (born May 15, 1934) is an American psychiatrist well known for his research on the effects of racism in the black community. He is a noted author, public speaker, and television consultant, and Dean of Students at H ...

The Last Poets The Last Poets are several groups of poets and musicians who arose from the late 1960s African-American civil rights movement's black nationalism. The name is taken from a poem by the South African revolutionary poet Keorapetse Kgositsile, who bel ...

Greg Tate Gregory Stephen Tate (October 14, 1957December 7, 2021) was an American writer, musician, and producer. A long-time critic for ''The Village Voice'', Tate focused particularly on African-American music and culture, helping to establish hip-h ...

Christopher Lukas Christopher Lukas (born March 6, 1935) is an American writer, stage actor, television producer and director who, for the past fifty-five years, has worked primarily for public television. From 1963 to 1971 he produced for WNET in New York Cit ...

Chester Higgins Jr. Chester Higgins Jr. (born November 1946) is an American photographer,Chester Higgins Jr bio ...

George Faison George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd President ...

Gayle Wald Gayle Wald is a professor of English and American Studies at George Washington University and a Guggenheim Fellow. From 1994-95 she was Visiting Assistant Professor of English and American Studies at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. Edu ...

* Dr. Billy Taylor * Sarah Lewis * Sylvia Waters *

Judith Jamison Judith Ann Jamison (pronounced JAM-ih-son) (born May 10, 1943) is an American dancer and choreographer. She is the artistic director emerita of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Early training Judith Jamison was born in 1943 to Tessie Brown Ja ...

Robert Thompson Robert or Bob Thompson may refer to: Entertainment * Bobby Thompson (comedian) (1911–1988), English comedian * Bob Thompson (musician) (1924–2013), American orchestra leader, arranger, composer * Robert E. Thompson (screenwriter) (1924–2004 ...

* Sade Lythcott * Obba Babatunde *

David Adams Leeming David Adams Leeming (born February 26, 1937) is an American Philology, philologist who is Professor Emeritus of English and Comparative Literature at the University of Connecticut, and a specialist in comparative literature of mythology. Biography ...

Leroy Burgess Leroy O'Neil Jackson Jr. (born August 20, 1953), known by his stage name Leroy Burgess, is an American singer, songwriter, keyboard player, recording artist, arranger and record producer. Burgess was a member of Black Ivory and lead vocalist o ...

Stuart Bascombe Stuart D. Bascombe (born January 20, 1954) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Bascombe is an original member of the Rhythm and blues, R&B/Soul music, soul vocal group Black Ivory who recorded a number of R&B hits ...

Russell Patterson Russell Patterson (December 26, 1893 – March 17, 1977) was an American cartoonist, illustrator and scenic designer. Patterson's art deco magazine illustrations helped develop and promote the idea of the 1920s and 1930s fashion style known as t ...

*Dr. Harold Haizlip *Alice LaBrie *Rev. Dr. Cheryl Sanders *Beth Ausbrooks *Mary Wilburn *Leslie Demus ;

Archival footage Stock footage, and similarly, archive footage, library pictures, and file footage is film or video footage that can be used again in other films. Stock footage is beneficial to filmmakers as it saves shooting new material. A single piece of stoc ...

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte (born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927) is an American singer, activist, and actor. As arguably the most successful Jamaican-American pop star, he popularized the Trinbagonian Caribbean musical style with an interna ...

Anna Maria Horsford Anna Maria Horsford is an American actress, known for her performances in television comedies. Horsford is best known for her roles as Thelma Frye on the NBC sitcom ''Amen'' (1986–91), and as Dee Baxter on the WB sitcom ''The Wayans Bros.'' (1 ...

Sidney Poitier Sidney Poitier ( ; February 20, 1927 – January 6, 2022) was an American actor, film director, and diplomat. In 1964, he was the first black actor and first Bahamian to win the Academy Award for Best Actor. He received two competitive ...

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

Sarah Dash Sarah Dash (August 18, 1945 – September 20, 2021) was an American singer and actress. She first appeared on the music scene as a member of Patti LaBelle & The Bluebelles. Dash was later a member of Labelle, and worked as a singer, sess ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944), known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer, actress and businesswoman. A seven-time Grammy Award-winner, Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Kn ...

Maya Angelou Maya Angelou ( ; born Marguerite Annie Johnson; April 4, 1928 – May 28, 2014) was an American memoirist, popular poet, and civil rights activist. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, several books of poetry, and ...

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

James Baldwin James Arthur Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – December 1, 1987) was an American writer. He garnered acclaim across various media, including essays, novels, plays, and poems. His first novel, '' Go Tell It on the Mountain'', was published in 1953; de ...

Earth Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million ...

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

Cicely Tyson Cicely Louise Tyson (December 19, 1924January 28, 2021) was an American actress. In a career which spanned more than seven decades in film, television and theatre, she became known for her portrayal of strong African-American women. Tyson recei ...

B.B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

Donny Hathaway Donny Edward Hathaway (October 1, 1945 – January 13, 1979) was an American soul singer, keyboardist, songwriter, and arranger whom ''Rolling Stone'' described as a "soul legend". His most popular songs include " The Ghetto", "This Christmas ...

Hugh Masekela Hugh Ramapolo Masekela (4 April 1939 – 23 January 2018) was a South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who was described as "the father of South African jazz". Masekela was known for his jazz compositions and for ...

Arsenio Hall Arsenio Hall (born February 12, 1956) is an American comedian, actor and talk show host. He hosted the late-night talk show, ''The Arsenio Hall Show'', from 1989 until 1994, and again from 2013 to 2014. He has appeared in ''Martial Law'', ''Comi ...

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...

The Delfonics The Delfonics were an American R&B/soul vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Delfonics were most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include "La-La (Means I Love You)", "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This ...

Mandrill The mandrill (''Mandrillus sphinx'') is a large Old World monkey native to west central Africa. It is one of the most colorful mammals in the world, with red and blue skin on its face and posterior. The species is sexually dimorphic, as males ...

New Birth Born again, or to experience the new birth, is a phrase, particularly in evangelicalism, that refers to a "spiritual rebirth", or a regeneration of the human spirit. In contrast to one's physical birth, being "born again" is distinctly and sepa ...

* Black Ivory *

Tito Puente Ernest Anthony Puente Jr. (April 20, 1923 – June 1, 2000), commonly known as Tito Puente, was an American musician, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer of Puerto Rican descent. He is best known for dance-oriented mambo and Latin jazz c ...

Stokely Carmichael Kwame Ture (; born Stokely Standiford Churchill Carmichael; June 29, 1941November 15, 1998) was a prominent organizer in the civil rights movement in the United States and the global pan-African movement. Born in Trinidad, he grew up in the Unite ...

Miriam Makeba Zenzile Miriam Makeba (4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including African popular music, Afropop, jazz, a ...

* Minister Louis Farrakhan

Awards and accolades

Mr. SOUL! received 32 Nominations and won 21 awards including 14 Film Festival Awards. On April 13, 2022, Mr. SOUL! was nominated for a 2022

in the category of Best Documentary. On June 6, 2022 actor Morgan Freeman announced that Mr. Soul! won the Peabody Award for Best Documentary.

References

External links

Official Site

Rotten Tomatoes Reviews
*
Mr. SOUL! PBS - Independent Lens
{{Black Reel Award for Outstanding Independent Documentary 2018 documentary films 2010s English-language films