Jamie Foxx scored an Academy Award for his "heart-bursting performance" in Taylor Hackford's Ray. A healthy dose of Oscar buzz ensured this biopic of the legendary blues musician Ray Charles was a modest hit and, along with a second nomination for Best Supporting Actor in Collateral, Foxx was suddenly launched into the Hollywood stratosphere.

Doing The Mess Around

An extended version of the film adds over 25 minutes to the running time and warrants a two-disc release, but it's shockingly edited with jarring jump cuts and grainy raw footage. Besides poor production values, it bloats the story with superfluous character notes and thereby accentuates already existing problems. Stick to the theatrical cut and view the 14 excised scenes (presented with optional director's commentary) on disc two. Among the best moments are Ray casually breaking social and musical barriers by leading a sing-a-long with a bunch of white marines on a cross-country bus ride. Meanwhile two extended musical sequences will get your toe tapping to What Kind Of Man Are You? and Hit The Road Jack.

Step Into The Part affords a glimpse of Foxx tickling the ivories with the late great Ray Charles in preparation for his breakthrough role. You may be surprised to discover that the onetime comic went to college on a piano-playing scholarship, but he also talks about other research and the eye prosthetics that left him blind for 12-14 hours a day. Much less edifying is A Look Inside Ray that runs at just over three minutes long. It's merely a collage of clips and soundbites, although Hackford rightly spends a little longer talking about Foxx's contribution. "Jamie's performance truly captures the thorny ethos of Ray Charles," he says.

Looking For Ray

Once again Hackford tips his hat to the leading man in a wide-ranging feature commentary (for the theatrical version only). He explains that the project - which went into development 15 years beforehand - came together at a fortuitous time as Foxx was emerging on the film scene. In fact everyone gets a shout from costume designer to cinematographer. Along with these technical notes, Hackford explains his take on Ray's life story in terms of the guilt he felt over his brother's drowning. "I think of this film as a ghost story," he says, "This was my interpretation of something that Ray Charles had talked to me about."

A short tribute to Charles by Hackford, Foxx et al ties up a package of extras that hits a few bum notes, but overall makes for uplifting viewing.

EXTRA FEATURES