Double Platinum (film)

Plot

The film tells the story of a woman feeling unfulfilled and unappreciated in her life so she decides to abandon her husband and infant daughter in order to pursue her dreams of superstardom. The story starts off by showing aspiring vocalist, Olivia King (Diana Ross) performing at small lounge in Atlanta, Georgia in 1981. As she takes a break from her performance she heads backstage to see her infant daughter, Kayla (Jayda Brown). A music executive approaches King at the bar and tells her she is talented and should move to the bigger market of New York City to fulfill her dreams. Olivia King initially denies his request and goes home to her husband (Brian Stokes Mitchell). King is shown trying to explain her night to her husband and tell him about the music executive but he brushes her off and tells her moving to New York City is a bad idea. Feeling depressed, conflicted and trapped in her marriage, Olivia King leaves her home in the middle of the night whispering to her daughter that she can't take her along, but will be back for her.

The movie then picks back up in St. Louis, Missouri, 18 years later, and it is shown that Kayla Harris (Brandy Norwood), now 19 years old, has won a contest to meet famous superstar Olivia King. Kayla at this time does not know that Olivia is her mother, but she grew up being a huge fan of Olivia King and is extremely excited to meet her idol, completely ignorant to the truth. After enjoying the concert, Kayla then gets the second part of her prize which includes having dinner with Olivia King. At dinner, Kayla lets Olivia know that she also would like to be a singer and invites Olivia to a small performance she would be doing. When Kayla gets home from dinner, her father asks her how it went and he is shocked to hear that the star Kayla got to meet was Olivia King, though he knows the truth he does not press the issue further as he sees his daughter is still in the dark. Next, Kayla is shown getting ready to perform, and she begins to worry that Olivia will not show up but sure enough Olivia shows up as Kayla starts to sing. Kayla is ecstatic that her idol has shown up but after the show Olivia pulls her aside and reveals to Kayla who she really is. Kayla is stunned, upset, and quickly leaves. Kayla is shaken, argues with her father, and refuses to speak to Olivia even when she offers to help her with her career. Kayla's best friend advises her to accept Olivia's help with her music career as it is the least she owes her.

Kayla reluctantly agrees to go to New York City with Olivia all the while Olivia continues to make futile attempts to build a relationship with Kayla. Olivia introduces Kayla to the people she knows in the industry, and with Olivia's strong recommendation and Kayla's talent, she is quickly signed. Kayla begins to work on her album and with Olivia's guidance and leadership she records her first song. As the story progresses, the two ladies continue living in Olivia's fancy penthouse apartment with Olivia trying not to step on Kayla's toes as she pursues success. Kayla then finds a steamy romance with a handsome older music executive, Ric Ortega (Allen Payne) whom her mother does not trust and warns her against, but Kayla ignores her mother's warning. Despite her growing success and hit single, Kayla continues to harbor bitter feelings towards Olivia, feelings which boil over during their record label's Grammy Party. After Kayla's performance, Olivia is asked to perform by the head of the label, causing Kayla to resent her mother for "stealing her spotlight". However, after discovering that Ric revealed her true parentage to the press and betrayed her just as her mother had warned, Kayla dissolves her relationship with him. Kayla, feeling down and regretful, heads up to her mother's cabin where Olivia is finding refuge. As they spend time at the cabin and truly communicate the two women begin to understand each other. Eventually, Kayla's feelings about her mother change and she begins to accept the truth about her mother and the events that took place when she was younger. The movie culminates with Olivia and Kayla going back to St. Louis for a concert Kayla is giving. Kayla sings her songs but as the show draws to an end she calls on her mother to come up on stage with her and they sing a wonderful duet together. Kayla's friend and family look on from the audience.

The movie was a Nielsen ratings success, debuting at #16 for the week. Along with airing original on ABC, it was also syndicated by VH1, MTV, BET, Centric and TV One (U.S. TV channel) where it still is a recurrent favorite.

Cast

Soundtrack

The songs featured in the film are found on Brandy's hit 1998 album, Never Say Never (including her popular hit song, "Have You Ever?"), other songs included in the movie from that album are: Happy and Almost Doesn't Count. Songs from Ross's 1999 album, Every Day Is a New Day also used., which was released two weeks prior to the film's premiere. "Love is All that Matters" was an original song performed by Brandy and Ross specifically for the film.