I had been told, as a huge fan of Musical Theatre, that there were currently two films which I needed to see; 'La La Land' and 'The Greatest Showman'. I have yet to see the former, but I had the opportunity of seeing the latter this evening at The New Adelphi Theatre, in Salford's university complex.
The film runs at about 100 minutes, and it is fast paced and entertaining; however I did leave with mixed feelings about the film in general. On the one hand, it is a hugely emotionally-controlled Hollywood-isation which is deliberately unchallenging and 'naive', with plenty of visual stimulation as well as an up-beat modern music score and modern dance routines which younger viewers will undoubtedly lap up. However, the other side of me tells me that this kind kind of emotion manipulation is not always a good thing, especially when dealing with history. Phineas Taylor Barnum and his 'Greatest Show On Earth', as well as many of the characters mentioned and featured in the film were real, however this is a fictional account of his life, despite some semblance of real events, it has been manipulated and altered to suit the circumstance - that of making a jolly feel-good family film! Maybe if Barnum were to come back now he would approve of this - he was after all, the King of Humbug!
If you were expecting a film as special and as full as 'Moulin Rouge', then it isn't - and it doesn't have the same theatricality as the stage Musical, 'Barnum', either; and sits somewhere quite smugly in between. It also has a lovely modern-day message resounding through the whole film - that of promoting acceptance and equality, which in the present climate, can't be a bad thing.
For me though, there are two things which stop me from lauding this film with praise. First, the quality of the singing. Hugh Jackman makes for a very personable and likeable showman as Barnum, but his singing voice does let him down. The worst voice however comes from Lauren Allred who is the singing voice of Jenny Lind. Jenny Lind, acted by Rebecca Ferguson was known as 'The Swedish Nightingale' and had the most pure and wonderful voice ever heard - it was also an operatic soprano - which sadly Allred's singing talents could simply not compete with. The second thing to really annoy me about the film was the use of CGI to create the animals. If the CGI had been good and clever it may have worked but sadly the elephants were all far too large and simply did not look real. [Barnum only had one large elephant - the largest elephant in the world - Jumbo] and the two lions which make up part of his circus act are more cartoon than realistic.
Therefore if we accept that this is not Barnum's life story, but the story of a showman with some parallels to his; we can therefore accept that instead of him becoming partners with a Mr. James Bailey, he instead becomes partners with a playwright by the name of Phillip Carlyle. (a typically handsome 'leading man' Zac Efron). Barnum's wife, Charity, was played straight by Michelle Williams, whilst Barnum's two young daughters were played excellently by Austin Johnson and Cameron Seely. It is the family of 'freaks' though who bring an extra dimension to this film, and their performances (some based on real Barnum performers - others not) are all very well acted and realised. General Tom Thumb (who was a young boy in the real Barnum shows) was played with earnestness here by Sam Humphrey {with James Babson's singing voice}. It was the hugely sensitive and understated performance of Zendaya as Ann Wheeler, a Native American trapeze artiste who captivated our attention towards the middle and denouement of the film however, as the sub-plot involving her and Carlyle became more important and it was her beautifully marked emotional journey which for me was the best acting of the film.
Yes it is a hugely predictable film which is totally undemanding on the part of the viewer; but as the film itself states, it is a celebration of humanity in all its differing shapes, sizes and colours, all being treated as equals, and that surely is something worthwhile. And as the real P T Barnum has been quoted as saying, 'The noblest art of all is that of making others happy', and this film certainly ticks that box too!
Review: Matthew Dougall
on - 19/11/18
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