TLC "CrazySexyCool" Biopic Draws Mixed Reviews, Big Ratings For VH1, Controversy

 CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story, the new biopic chronicling the life and times of girl group TLC, was a big hit for VH1 and ignited a new wave of interest in their music.

It was not, however, what you would call an uplifting film.
Tensions are still high between surviving members Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas, and their former manager, Perri "Pebbles" Reid.


CrazySexyCool: The TLC Story, which aired Monday night, turned an unflattering spotlight on Pebbles, whom they blame for their financial problems.
Documenting the group's rise to fame in 1990s and early 2000s, the film was a darker than expected look at T-Boz, Chilli, and the late Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes.
Their hit 1994 album CrazySexyCool, upon which the film is named, spawned classics including "Waterfalls" and "Creep" and sold more than 23 million copies.
Incredibly, just eight months after CrazySexyCool's release, the group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and declared debts totaling some $3.5 million.
The biopic, for which T-Boz and Chilli served as executive producers, suggests that Pebbles was the root of the trio's financial problems and turmoil.
She's portrayed as a greedy hanger-on who withheld millions of dollars from her clients, an allegation that does not sit well with the real-life Pebbles.
"I'm NOT here to promote something I put on the MAP and yet have been disrespected because of more reasons than one!" she tweeted afterward.
"I am in shock listening to all this mess and lies. This is madness!!! It's SO hard to believe this! Not going to comment about this anymore on here Unofficially."
"Dealing with this though. Lawyers on deck."
T-Boz and Chilli, for their part, stand by the movie, both for its depiction of Pebbles and the predominant focus on the many lows the group experienced.
"This story is from our perspective," Chili tells Us Weekly. "And we did not lie... We told the truth, and that's how our experience was ... That's how it was."
Critically, reviewers were mixed by the effort, which die-hard fans will no doubt love but which was scattered and all over the place for the casual viewer.

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