Flix!
I don't like musicals. Since in 1967 or 68, when producers totally trashed the musical Oliver! and then they put out the worst piece of garbage ever put on film, a musical I love and they wiped their ass with it on screen. Not only do I hate it, I want everyone who produced it to die of painful cancer in their eyes.
So I never go to musicals. So the wife took me to The Greatest Showman, and just after the star and director thank you for coming on screen the movie starts to roll and my beautiful wife leans over and says, "You know this is a musical right?" She waited because she knew I'd never to go if I knew.
And then it started. This is a total masterpiece. The poses of Jackman in the beginning were perfect. And then the music. Masterful. Every song, one after another, superb. And a great story to boot. Zack Efron is fantastic. The whole cast is spot on. Including the Jenny Lind character and even the kids who played Barnum and his wife as kids.
I bought the soundtrack and listen to it most of the time. We own the Blue-Ray and even after we did, I went and saw it in the theater anyway. Who knew Hugh Jackman could sing like this? Probably many people, but I didn't.
I love the Youtube videos of Jackman singing before he was medically allowed to and as he's singing he starts bleeding from his cancer surgery scars on his nose, but he was so dedicated he had to jump in out of excitement for the project.
I think this was the best film I've seen since Hidden Figures and I was certain that it was going to sweep the Oscars in every category. But what happened? It was ignored. And that put the stamp of death on the Oscars for me. It's not just that they ignored this masterful film, it's that they gave the best picture nod to an absolutely horrible film about a women who falls for a fish.
Oh wait. It wasn't entirely ignored. There was a song nominated. And near the end of the Oscar broadcast This Is Me was performed by the cast member and it brought the house down. And then that gave it to that cute little song from Coco. Not nearly on the same level as This Is Me.
So The Greatest Showman is an absolutely wonderful film. I couldn't recommend it more.
Grade: A+
