Aretha Franklin documentary ‘Amazing Grace’ to finally release

More than 46 years after it was shot, the Aretha Franklin concert film Amazing Grace will finally be released, ending one of the most tortured and long-running sagas in documentary film.

The late gospel singer’s estate and film producers said on Monday that Amazing Grace will premiere on November 12 at the DOC NYC film festival with the full support of Franklin’s estate. The film, largely shot by Sydney Pollack, captures Franklin’s performance at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles’ Watts neighbourhood in January 1972.

The music from the two performances was released as a landmark double live album in 1972. But Pollack’s footage proved virtually impossible to edit because the filmmaker failed to sync the sound. After acquiring the film’s rights from Pollack in 2007, producer Alan Elliott brought in a team to construct the film, which Elliott calls “a labour of love.”

“Aretha’s fans will be enthralled by every moment of the film as her genius, her devotion to God and her spirit are present in every frame,” Elliot said in a statement.

An Oscar-qualifying release of Amazing Grace is planned for this autumn, with a larger rollout in theatres likely coming next year. —