Hitsville: The Making of Motown Dir. Benjamin Turner & Gabe Turner, Documentary
The creation of Tamla Motown Records by the visionary music guru Berry Gordy is one of the most epic success stories of the twentieth century. It has been told many times and in many splendid ways: on film, stage (on Broadway, and for the past three years in London’s West End), and on TV…
This new doc purports to chronicle the ‘astronomical success and enduring cultural impact’ of the label, and was made to celebrate the brand’s 60th anniversary in 2019. It claims to have the full blessing of Gordy, and as far as documentary and objectivity go, this could mean it’s a vanity project. But, Hitsville is ram-jammed with the upbeat, inspirational, transformational music that defined a generation, so that will soon be forgiven and forgotten.
Besides, the whole Motown Family is featured, with interviews and performances from the likes of Martha Reeves, Mary Wilson, The Jackson Five, Stevie Wonder, as well as Gordy and his sideman Smokey Robinson, plus admirers and commentators like Jamie Foxx and Dr. Dre.
R&VFF dreams of screening Hitsville alongside the fantastic Standing in the Shadows of Motown (Dir. Paul Justman, 2002), which told the story of The Funk Brothers, the Motown band behind the chart-topping sounds at the label’s music factory in Detroit, before Gordy Pied-Pipered the brand to LA – leaving the band behind.
