Amazing Grace (2018 film)

Amazing Grace
Theatrical release poster
Directed byAlan Elliott ("realized by")
Sydney Pollack (uncredited)
Produced by
Starring
Edited byJeff Buchanan
Production
company
Al's Records & Tapes Production
Distributed byNeon[2]
Time[3]
Release dates
  • November 12, 2018 (2018-November-12) (Doc NYC)
  • April 5, 2019 (2019-April-05) (general)
Running time
87 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$10.4 million[4][5]

Amazing Grace is a 2018 concert film "realized and produced" by Alan Elliott. The film's footage was shot under the direction of Sydney Pollack, who does not receive directorial credit, just a "special thanks." Amazing Grace stars Aretha Franklin recording her 1972 live album of the same name. It co-stars James Cleveland, Alexander Hamilton, and the Southern California Community Choir, and features her father C. L. Franklin.

The film was not released as scheduled in 1972 due to difficulty in synchronizing the audio with the visual print, and was relegated to a Warner Bros. vault until 2007, when producer Alan Elliott purchased the raw footage and attempted to synchronize it. The edited footage, 87 minutes in length, was planned for a 2011 release. However, Franklin sued Elliott for appropriating her likeness without permission, and the release date passed. Elliott made another attempt in 2015 to hold the film's premiere at the Telluride Film Festival, at the Toronto International Film Festival, and at the Chicago International Film Festival, but Franklin sued him again for reasons that have not been revealed. After Franklin's death in 2018, her family made an arrangement to release the film, which premiered at Doc NYC in 2018, before being released worldwide on April 5, 2019. The film has received critical acclaim.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference variety1203027289 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ "Aretha Franklin Documentary 'Amazing Grace' Bought by Neon". Variety. December 7, 2018. Archived from the original on December 8, 2018. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  3. ^ "Time Joins Aretha Franklin Concert Documentary Amazing Grace as Distribution Partner with NEON". Time. March 6, 2019. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
  4. ^ "Amazing Grace (2018)". Box Office Mojo. Archived from the original on April 14, 2019. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  5. ^ "Amazing Grace (2018)". The Numbers. Archived from the original on May 31, 2019. Retrieved July 21, 2019.