releases, Beyoncé commented on the song with Billboard stating: "A lot of music was written especially for the film. At first, I was concerned about the timing of the soundtrack, [because] my solo album was supposed to come out way before the movie. But then the solo album got delayed." While later announcing the release of the soundtrack album in a press release, Beyoncé said: Once you hear the song 'Fighting Temptation', and all the music in this film, you can't help but fall in love with it. You'll definitely get emotional. You might become happy or even sad, but your heart will get full. All the songs are touching and spiritual, and that's what the movie itself is like. "Fighting Temptations" was released as a CD single in Germany on July 5, 2004. Prior to that, it was sent to urban contemporary radio for airplay in the United States on August 18, 2003. Critical reception Heather Phares of AllMusic wrote: "[...] the seven tracks that feature Beyoncé on her own or with other collaborators are more striking: in particular, the movie's title track, a surprisingly fun and funky celebration." Dani Boobyer of The Situation UK commented that the soundtrack album "jumpstarts with the explosive 'Fighting Temptation' [...] setting R&B princess Beyoncé's sweet vocals against the hard sounds of Missy and MC Lyte's raps." Ed Gonzalez of Slant Magazine wrote that the song's artists are not fighting temptations like the song's title says, but are looking for them. Commercial performance "Fighting Temptation" charted across mainland Europe in early 2004, failing to chart altogether in the United States. In the Netherlands, it debuted at number 20 on the Dutch Top 40, peaking at number 13 in its second week. The song reached its peak of number 37 in its sixth week on the Flanders Singles Chart in Belgium, charting for a total of seven consecutive weeks until mid-April 2004. On August 29, the song debuted and peaked at number 42 on the Swiss Singles Chart. Music video The accompanying music video for the song was directed by Antti Jokinen and it features Beyoncé, Elliott, MC Lyte and Free. It was shot in an abandoned mansion near Los Angeles by the end of June 2003. Performance footage was seamlessly melded with clips from the movie. On the set, Beyoncé expressed herself: "Basically, it's kind of like a ladies' night 'cause it's all