a masterful performance by jamie foxx be just one of the highlight of ray and a 2004 film also star kerry washington and regina king and curtis armstrong and richard schiff and sharon warren and patrick bachau and and many others and all give excellent support to the film . the film have several main focus represent the first be charles childhood the drowning of his brother george which haunt him for year and the glaucoma that blind him and and the strength teach him by his mother do not bend and do not break and do not ever be a cripple . she eventually send him to a special school where charles gift of music be discover . the next focus be charles artistic evolution a a nat king cole like singer and to his arrangement of gospel music and his foray into country music and and the unique sound that become ray charles . the third focus be charles personal life his marriage to bea and his many affair and his heroin addiction and eventual rehabilitation . because charles live a packed 74 year and there a lot skip . though charles be orphan while in his teen and the death of his beloved mother and his rock and isn not in the film . while he be show on the chitlin circuit and refusing to play in segregated club and his near starvation a a musician isn not cover . at one point and he find a jar of jelly and attempt to eat it and but the jar break . he be that down and out . bea be show with him when the state of georgia and which ban him and adopts georgia on my mind a their theme song in 1979 and welcome charles back to his native state and yet he and bea be divorce in 1977 which isn not mention . she probably be there and however . also and she wasn not his only wife he be marry once before he meet her while that marriage isn not cover . in the movie and be tell of one illegitimate child there be 12. it would have be impossible to get all of that and more into a film . what isn not skip be his glorious music and which seem to go on constantly throughout the film and continually reinforce his genius and artistry . charles story be compelling and hold the audience interest throughout . those who scoff at it a a made for tv movie do not give it the credit it deserve . taylor hackford direction give ray a good pace and and the movie have a lot of atmosphere and evoke the various decade beautifully . a ray and jamie foxx inhabit the character and make one forget he a comedian play a part . foxx wear prosthetics and do his own piano playing and and spend a great deal of time with charles prepare for the role . he nail him and but it not an impersonation he a flesh and blood man with hallucination of stand in water and find his brother body while a man full of denial about his addiction and hat the word junkie and believe he not hook while and he in denial about his home life and thinking that his wife doesn not know about his various affair and illegitimate child ( in the movie and child ) while and a man take terrible advantage of early in his career because of his blindness who refuse to be walk on later on . he demand to be pay in $ 1 bill so they can be count while when he discover he a gravy train for a club owner and her partner and be nearly cheat out of a record deal and he make his own deal and leave his job . one doesn not so much marvel at foxx performance a accept him a ray from the first time he appear on camera . this be an excellent biography and which and like walk the line be punctuate with the fantastic music of the artist . whether or not youre a ray charles fan and ray be something to experience .