Overview
A heartfelt journey through the highs and lows of friendship and ambition in the music industry.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Mild
- nostalgic
- energetic
- sincere
- music movie night
- nostalgic weekend viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly found the music performances compelling but considered the music-montage-heavy storytelling a major weakness.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The Five Heartbeats move from amateur singers to a top-flight professional act through a conventional ascent narrative.
Musical numbers and montages track the group's development and expose tensions that ordinary dialogue does not resolve.
The group faces casual racism within the music industry as they pursue recognition in early-1960s America.
The members' personal weaknesses and the industry's greed threaten the integrity of the band.
Films like The Five Heartbeats, and why
Sparkle
shared musical drama structure, Black artistic community, and themes of ambition, exploitation, and loyalty
Dreamgirls
shared rise-and-fall music-industry narrative, ensemble performance energy, and personal conflict
The Commitments
shared rhythm and blues setting, Black cultural history, and nostalgic musical performances
That Thing You Do!
shared band-centered drama, professional ambition, and tensions between artistic integrity and commercial success
Movie Details
- Director
- Robert Townsend
- Release Date
- 1991-03-29
- Runtime
- 121 min
- Rating
- 7.3 / 10 (75)
Cast
- Robert Townsend
- Michael Wright
- Leon
- Harry Lennix
- Tico Wells
- Diahann Carroll
- Harold Nicholas
- John Canada Terrell
- Hawthorne James
- Roy Fegan
Where to watch in United States
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Five Heartbeats about?
- An ambitious African American vocal group finds success and painful lessons when music-industry racism, greed, and internal weakness challenge its brotherhood.
- What is The Five Heartbeats like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Five Heartbeats as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is The Five Heartbeats violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in The Five Heartbeats as mild.
- What did critics think of The Five Heartbeats?
- Critics broadly found the music performances compelling but considered the music-montage-heavy storytelling a major weakness.
- Which films are like The Five Heartbeats?
- Films with a similar feel include Sparkle, Dreamgirls, The Commitments, and That Thing You Do!.
- How long is The Five Heartbeats?
- The Five Heartbeats runs 121 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Five Heartbeats?
- In United States, The Five Heartbeats is available to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home.
