Whitney Houston's estate condemned the biopic and prepared fans for "the worst" but celebrities and critics have praised it.

In her directorial debut, Angela Bassett was given a resounding thumbs up from people across the industry and fans were also generally pleased at how the picture turned out.

While expectations for the biopic were very low, particularly after the disastrous Aaliyah movie, Lifetime seems to have got it surprisingly right.

CONGRATULATIONS to @ImAngelaBassett on your directorial debut!!!!!!!! Wooooo hooooooo #WhitneyMovie @lifetimetv

— kerry washington (@kerrywashington) January 18, 2015

@Deborah_Cox Your voice. #swoon #WhitneyMovie

— Holly Robinson Peete (@hollyrpeete) January 18, 2015

Enjoyed the #WhitneyMovie ! GOOD JOB ALL AROUND! SUPER PROUD OF @ImAngelaBassett great actors are great directors

— Elise Neal (@TheRealNealE) January 18, 2015

In a damning statement, Houston's sister-in-law was highly critical of the biopic and director Angela Bassett who she thought had advanced her own personal agenda in doing the film. She also said the Lifetime biopic was being made in a

"creative pursuit at the expense of the integrity of such an iconic woman."

Despite the warnings ahead of the screening, people were intrigued to see how bad it would be, and to their surprise, both the directing and the singing performances were highly praised. Is this the start of a new career for Angela Bassett behind the camera?

It's easy to criticize… It should be just as easy to give credit where it's due. There is some good acting in this #WhitneyMovie.

— Christian Keyes (@ChristianKeyes) January 18, 2015

#Whitneymovie She is looking down Saying...Thank you @ImAngelaBassett pic.twitter.com/lmzzEFk0u9

— W.R.Holloway (@tryandtrynSurry) January 18, 2015