Movie Review: “The Greatest Showman”

There is often considerable debate among moviegoers about the musical genre (I guess you can call it a genre) — and opinions can vary greatly. 

In my mind, the key to any musical (either presented on film or a live stage production) is the music. If the filmmakers have a good soundtrack, it tends to help the overall experience. 

“The Greatest Showman” is the latest musical spectacle to come out of Hollywood. The film was released on Dec. 20, 2017, and I finally saw it Jan. 30 (I’m behind on my movie viewing). 

I’ve largely avoided reading reviews of “The Greatest Showman,” but I know that opinions have been varied on the film, which tells a hyper-stylized biographical sketch of the rise of P.T. Barnum — the man whose entrepreneurial efforts created what would eventually become the Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Circus.

When the movie begins, we find the young Phineas Taylor Barnum (Ellis Rubin) working alongside his father Philo (Will Swenson). The pair works for the Hallett family, and P.T is smitten with daughter Charity (Skylar Dunn). The girl is sent to finishing school, but the two stay in touch via letters, and are eventually reunited (the song “A Million Dreams” plays throughout this sequence). 

The mature P.T. (Hugh Jackman) and Charity (Michelle Williams) marry, and have two daughters. They live a spartan life in New York City. Yet, they have each other.

Barnum is a dreamer. He longs for more for his family. When he loses his job as a clerk at a bankrupt shipping company, he devises a clever scheme to get a bank loan to start his own business — Barnum’s American Museum. 

The museum is designed to attract customers via bizarre and macabre oddities — mostly featuring wax figures. Despite various 19th century marketing efforts (the whole family hands out fliers to people passing by), the business is a flop. 

But you can’t keep a good man down. The unflappable Barnum eventually keys in on the idea of living, breathing people for his show — the misfits, oddballs, and peculiar of society. What society sees as shortcomings are signs of beauty (and potential profit) for the dauntless businessman. 

When a critic refers to the show as a “circus,” Barnum has his new name for his operation, and is well on his way to taking Manhattan by storm. 

But P.T. isn’t satisfied with merely being successful with the masses. He wants to appeal to the upper crust of society. In that effort, he recruits playwright Phillip Carlyle (Zac Efron) to add a certain panache to the circus.

The song “The Other Side” highlights this sequence of events — “So trade that typical/For something colorful/And if it’s crazy live a little crazy”

As is the case with the “nouveau riche” in these sorts of stories, Barnum’s success eventually goes to his head, and his desire to be “reputable” in show business leads him to Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson)— a famous Swedish singer he and Carlyle meet while visiting Queen Victoria. 

(You might remember Rebecca Ferguson from her role as an assassin in 2015’s “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation”).

Barnum’s desire to put Lind on the map in the United States — cementing his status as a “legitimate” entrepreneur — eventually threatens his business, his marriage, and his reputation. 

It’s been less than 24 hours since I watched “The Greatest Showman” at Aksarben Cinema, but I’m already kind of obsessed with the soundtrack. 

The highlight of the buoyant pop vocals is the song “This Is Me” — a self-esteem anthem that has been nominated for an Oscar in the “Original Song” category. The song has already been honored with a Golden Globe.

The tracks in “The Greatest Showman” are written by Justin Paul and Benj Pasek — who worked on 2016’s “La La Land” (read my review of “La La Land”). 

While Pasek and Paul’s musical stylings in “The Greatest Showman” might lack the nuance and hipster sensibility of their award-winning song “City of Stars” from “La La Land,” the soundtrack for “The Greatest Showman” is a rousing pop concept that feels very “Broadway” — throaty anthems, full of pomp-and-circumstance, that are instantly hummable. 

If you’re looking for historical accuracy in “The Greatest Showman,” look elsewhere. Like a Broadway musical, this movie uses the strategy “why say it when you can sing it” to full effect, and creative liberties are taken. 

I also should mention the performance of Zendaya in “The Greatest Showman.” She plays Anne Wheeler — a trapeze artist and acrobat. She becomes the object of Phillip Carlyle’s affections. The two duet on the song “Rewrite the Stars” — “I know you want me/So don’t keep saying our hands are tied” — which focuses on a love that 19th century society frowns upon.

The movie is schmaltzy with a healthy dose of corniness, but very likable. It might not be as unique or ambitious as Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 musical “Moulin Rouge!” (a movie I saw opening day with my friend Joel Mack), but it is a lot of fun.  

While it might not be the perfect movie, “The Greatest Showman” was significantly better than Hugh Jackman’s previous musical motion picture outing in “Les Miserables” (a movie that plodded along, and proved that Russell Crowe can’t sing). 

“The Greatest Showman” was in development at Fox for seven years. According to Jackman in a promotional video for the movie, the director — Michael Gracey — had mainly done commercials leading up to this project. The fate of the movie depended on a single table read. 

I have the privilege of owning a business that helps with the marketing of a circus. You have a business long enough, you have the opportunity to do all sorts of interesting things, and “The Greatest Showman” resonated with me since I’ve spent the past month creating billboards, print ads and posters promoting the 89th Annual Tangier Shrine Circus.

My niece Lauren kept nudging me to see this movie (after she saw it a week ago with friends). She told me that “The Greatest Showman” was good and had a terrific soundtrack. 

Depending on how you feel about musicals, you might want to check out “The Greatest Showman” for yourself. 

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