Aretha Franklin film Amazing Grace: Trailer, documentary release date and all the details
15 April 2019, 16:11 | Updated: 15 April 2019, 16:16
Aretha Franklin's long anticipated documentary 'Amazing Grace' is due to be released in the UK. Here we answer all your questions including when it will be released, where you can watch the trailer and a history of the film.
After nearly 50 years in the making, Aretha Franklin documentary Amazing Grace is almost here!
But what is the film's history and when is it out? Here's all you need to know...
Amazing Grace release date: When is it coming out?
Amazing Grace, the Aretha Franklin documentary from 1972, will be released in the UK on May 10.
The film was shot in 1972, but various issues led it to be scrapped for decades.
Amazing Grace film trailer: Is there a teaser?
Yes! The trailer was released by Studio Canal UK on March 6, 2019.
Speaking about the new film, Aretha's niece Sabrina Owens - who controls the late singer's estate - told the Guardian: “The way she conducted herself [in the film] was totally different than what you would see at one of her pop concerts.
"Her eyes were closed. Her head was thrown back. She was focused entirely on something higher.”
The full Amazing Grace trailer is available to watch above.
Amazing Grace documentary: What is it about?
The long-awaited Aretha Franklin documentary will finally be shown nearly 50 years after it was filmed.
The late Queen of Soul, who passed away in August at the age of 76, was recorded on film by acclaimed director Sydney Pollack in 1972, for a film titled Amazing Grace.
Aretha Franklin's greatest ever live performances
The film was made over two nights at the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, where Aretha recorded her Amazing Grace live album.
The star sang in front of an audience including Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts, Aretha's father Reverend C.L. Franklin and her mentor Clara Ward.
The moment Aretha Franklin stepped in for Pavarotti
However, director Pollack made the error of not using clapper boards during the project, meaning that 20 hours of raw footage shot was very difficult to edit.
It then stayed unedited for decades, while other issues included legal battles stopped it from being completed.
The film was finally finished in 2011, after producer Alan Elliot acquired the rights in 2007, and assembled a production team to use digital technology to edit the footage.
