tick, tick ... BOOM! (B+ or 3.5/4 stars)
Pulitzer Prize & Tony Award winner Lin-Manuel Miranda, the composer of the wildly popular Hamilton, makes his directorial debut with "tick, tick ... BOOM!", an adaptation of the semi-autobiographical musical by the late Jonathan Larson (played here by Andrew Garfield), who died of an aortic aneurysm at the age of 35, JUST prior to the premiere of his revolutionary stage hit, Rent. If you are not a theater geek, you're probably not going to appreciate many of the amazing cameos & insider Easter eggs sprinkled throughout this film. AS a theater geek, I admire Andrew Garfield's larger-than-life portrayal, as well as a kinetic energy which propels the film forward whenever the solid, if unremarkable narrative stalls, here & there.
The film follows Jonathan, a 29 yr. old optimistic playwright who waits tables at a NYC diner in 1990 while trying to complete the 'next great musical', his "Superbia". Days before he is to showcase it in a make-or-break performance, Jonathan is feeling pressure from just about everywhere. He feels it from workshop runner, Ira Weitzman (Jonathan Marc Sherman). He feels it from his lead singers, Roger & Karissa (Joshua Henry, Vanessa Hudgens). He feels it from his uncertain agent, Rosa (Judith Light). He feels it from his loving dancer/singer girlfriend, Susan (Alexandra Shipp), who has dreams that extend beyond NYC. He feels it from his Soho roommate/best friend, Michael (Robin de Jesus), who has moved on from his own failed dreams to a blase life of financial security. He is heartbroken about his artistic community which was being ravaged by the AIDS epidemic. And he feels his own immense pressure to find 'one more song' to complete his musical. At a crossroads, Jonathan faces the question that we all wrestle with in life: What are we to do with it, & how much time do we have? Hence, tick, tick ... BOOM!
What with his tremendous stage play, In the Heights, being transformed into a movie, his involvement in 2 animated films (Vivo & Encanto), & now his directorial debut with this film, Lin-Manuel Miranda is having QUITE the year. For Larson, while "Superbia" never took flight, his subsequent effort, Rent went on to be tremendous. What a shame that he was not able to enjoy that success. Narratively, for this film, there is nothing spectacular about Larson's life. Like most artists, he is driven, broke, naive & obsessed with approval. I enjoyed how this film doesn't craft the plot in a paint-by-numbers way; lots of cinematic techniques are employed to keeps things moving. But as mentioned above, the narrative may only appeal to a niche audience.
Andrew Garfield is fantastic playing the suffering artist type in an engaging, oddly empathetic performance of someone who acted somewhat selfishly at the time. As Larson, Garfield comes across as witty, creative & magnetic {despite how hammy with a capital H he was}. Garfield imbues authentic emotion that captures the complexity of someone confident in their abilities, yet wholly frustrated by how his love or art may not prove fruitful {either cathartically or lucratively}. Garfield throws all of himself into this role and, who knew he was such a great singer & nimble mover!? The whole cast impresses, here; including Bradley Whitford making a splash as famed Stephen Sondheim. And for Broadway aficionados, the array of cameos who pop-up during the fabulous "Sunday" number (Bernadette Peters, Joel Grey, Chita Rivera, Bebe Neuwirth, Hamilton stars, the list goes on & on) is incredible.
I loved the zany opening birthday number, "30/90". That show stopping "Sunday" blew me away with those cameos & a moveable diner set. And "Come To Your Senses", sung by Alexandra Shipp & Vanessa Hudgens is great. As mentioned above, the film is full of emotion, but lacks drama {in transition scenes before & after the enjoyable-in-the moment musical sequences}. And I loathed a certain focus group scene that felt farcical or satirical, and yet, I don't believe that was the intent -- I just thought it was horribly acted & executed. Despite my niggling issues with the film, being a struggling artist type himself, Miranda provides a loving tribute to the highs & lows of the creative process & of a man who unknowingly revolutionized Broadway.
The film follows Jonathan, a 29 yr. old optimistic playwright who waits tables at a NYC diner in 1990 while trying to complete the 'next great musical', his "Superbia". Days before he is to showcase it in a make-or-break performance, Jonathan is feeling pressure from just about everywhere. He feels it from workshop runner, Ira Weitzman (Jonathan Marc Sherman). He feels it from his lead singers, Roger & Karissa (Joshua Henry, Vanessa Hudgens). He feels it from his uncertain agent, Rosa (Judith Light). He feels it from his loving dancer/singer girlfriend, Susan (Alexandra Shipp), who has dreams that extend beyond NYC. He feels it from his Soho roommate/best friend, Michael (Robin de Jesus), who has moved on from his own failed dreams to a blase life of financial security. He is heartbroken about his artistic community which was being ravaged by the AIDS epidemic. And he feels his own immense pressure to find 'one more song' to complete his musical. At a crossroads, Jonathan faces the question that we all wrestle with in life: What are we to do with it, & how much time do we have? Hence, tick, tick ... BOOM!
What with his tremendous stage play, In the Heights, being transformed into a movie, his involvement in 2 animated films (Vivo & Encanto), & now his directorial debut with this film, Lin-Manuel Miranda is having QUITE the year. For Larson, while "Superbia" never took flight, his subsequent effort, Rent went on to be tremendous. What a shame that he was not able to enjoy that success. Narratively, for this film, there is nothing spectacular about Larson's life. Like most artists, he is driven, broke, naive & obsessed with approval. I enjoyed how this film doesn't craft the plot in a paint-by-numbers way; lots of cinematic techniques are employed to keeps things moving. But as mentioned above, the narrative may only appeal to a niche audience.
Andrew Garfield is fantastic playing the suffering artist type in an engaging, oddly empathetic performance of someone who acted somewhat selfishly at the time. As Larson, Garfield comes across as witty, creative & magnetic {despite how hammy with a capital H he was}. Garfield imbues authentic emotion that captures the complexity of someone confident in their abilities, yet wholly frustrated by how his love or art may not prove fruitful {either cathartically or lucratively}. Garfield throws all of himself into this role and, who knew he was such a great singer & nimble mover!? The whole cast impresses, here; including Bradley Whitford making a splash as famed Stephen Sondheim. And for Broadway aficionados, the array of cameos who pop-up during the fabulous "Sunday" number (Bernadette Peters, Joel Grey, Chita Rivera, Bebe Neuwirth, Hamilton stars, the list goes on & on) is incredible.
I loved the zany opening birthday number, "30/90". That show stopping "Sunday" blew me away with those cameos & a moveable diner set. And "Come To Your Senses", sung by Alexandra Shipp & Vanessa Hudgens is great. As mentioned above, the film is full of emotion, but lacks drama {in transition scenes before & after the enjoyable-in-the moment musical sequences}. And I loathed a certain focus group scene that felt farcical or satirical, and yet, I don't believe that was the intent -- I just thought it was horribly acted & executed. Despite my niggling issues with the film, being a struggling artist type himself, Miranda provides a loving tribute to the highs & lows of the creative process & of a man who unknowingly revolutionized Broadway.