This year, we saw a plethora of movie musicals hit the screens—both the big and small ones—with the debut of Dear Evan Hansen, In the Heights, Tick, Tick…Boom!, Encanto, West Side Story, Annette, and the dreaded Cinderella. As a musical theatre lover for my entire life, this year seemed like a dream come true. In trying to watch as many of these musicals as possible (even the not so critically acclaimed ones), I was determined to make my own judgments by asking some tough questions. How was the musical adapted for the screen? Did the talent level match the musical’s intention? How did it make me feel? In these troubling times, was the musical one that made me laugh, cry, or something in-between?
After watching many of these musicals, one stood out to me: Tick, Tick…Boom! As a fan of the musical Rent, I was already familiar with this piece, a lesser-known earlier work of creator Jonathan Larson. However, I was curious as to how the screenplay by Steven Levenson and the directorial influence of Lin-Manuel Miranda would stay true to the very organic and paired down nature of the original stage production. To my pleasant surprise, the film adaptation utilized the semi-biographical musical to its advantage, interweaving various aspects of Larson’s life into the movie’s structure. The musical served as the foundational basis for which the rest of the story was told. From Larson’s love life to his friends to his dreams, the musical transformed me (and I am sure many other audience members) into Larson’s biggest fan, rooting for his success as his story began to unfold on screen.
I also found myself almost mesmerized by the performance of Andrew Garfield. When first hearing of his leading role in this movie musical, I was partially confused and partially intrigued because I did not even know that Garfield could sing. In investigating Garfield’s musical history, he himself didn’t think so either. On an episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Garfield told the funny tale of sharing a massage therapist with Lin-Manuel Miranda. One day, during a session with the massage therapist, Miranda asked if Garfield could sing, since he was aware that the two were both clients of this same massage therapist. The massage therapist told Miranda that Garfield had the voice of an “angel” without actually knowing if it was true. A year after this exchange, Garfield and Miranda met and the movie preparations began. Despite this unique casting pathway, it seems as though that massage therapist was right—Garfield really can sing. But to me, what was most impressive was the way in which Garfield embodied Larson. There were times where Garfield’s portrayal and the documented footage I had seen of Larson previously blended together. It was clear that Garfield put extraordinary care into playing Larson the right way.
In returning to those key questions that I asked myself at the end of every musical I watched, I found myself responding positively to each. Rather than just re-create the musical on screen, the screenwriter expanded on the story and tried to share more about Larson with the world, making it a much better fit for an adaptation. The cast was talented, making me hum the melodies of the songs days after screening the movie in my living room. Lastly, the musical made me feel. I smiled seeing the work of Larson come alive, but I will also admit that the story led to a few tears in the final musical scene.
With Rotten Tomatoes reviewing the film with a high score of eighty-eight per cent, there seems to be little debate over the ways in which this film has positively touched the lives of many theatregoers and movie lovers alike. If you haven’t seen this musical adaptation yet, I highly recommend that you prioritize this Netflix flick for your next quarantine watch!