DEAR EVAN HANSEN Movie Musical - News & Discussion Thread- Page 36

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 12:23pm

Jordan Catalano said: "No. You said “ First of all, there are absolutely some stories that don't need to be told.” Your quote. I don’t care if you liked or didn’t like this particular film or this particular story, you said some don’t “need” to be told.

And now I’m talking about art in general, not this film. An artist has zero responsibility to lay everything out for the audience to understand. That’s up to them, how they want to present what they make and yes, it’s up to you how you want to receive it. They have no right telling you how to react to it, just like you have no right telling them how they need to present it.

And again - I get you’ve had family loss. Same. Same with pretty much everyone else on the planet at one time or another. Everyone experiences it differently. Some get angry, some withdraw, some change their lives, some turn to drugs like my brother did until one day, they kill themselves. And then I, in return choose how to react to that. But this story isn’t written for me to feel comfortable with what’s being talked about. It’s written telling the story of this person and those families and how THEY deal with it. It has nothing to do with you or your comfort level.


I'm very much with Jordan on this. Any story can be told-the writer takes the risk and the audience passes judgment. Those judgments are based on the lived experience of the viewer. There is no definitive "right" interpretation. If we start trying to say a story can't be told, we are back to book burning. 

Like Jordan said, I don't know anyone, myself included, who hasn't experienced a family loss or trauma. I'm very much an "and" person, so I don't view any character or action through one lens. When I watched DEH, I didn't connect with the Murphy's being victimized, I connected with their desire to understand. I also saw the Murphys as a metaphor for the denial of grief. People tell themselves lies to quiet their minds and their hearts every day. Evan had a traumatic familial wound related to the loss of his father and his notion of connection and family. He felt, broken, missing, damaged. Both parties trauma cemented them over a fantasy. Both parties projected onto each other. The Murphy's knew the anger and rancor of their son/brother-would he really befriend this odd, awkward young man when he couldn't be kind to his own sister or mother? Would he eloquently write his thoughts when it was inability to articulate them that led to his lashing out? 

In the original Broadway production, I think "Words Fail" beautifully showed this lapse of judgment out of a desire to heal a traumatic wound. Some people ache very deeply and it doesn't make them a sociopath. I think most people related to wanting something emotional they never got. They could probably understand the desire to lie to get it. Especially as a young person. Young people who experience trauma want things to be clean, nice, orderly. They want attentive parents who love them expressively, cook for them, instruct them, and are present. Like the people on TV. I had tremendous empathy for Evan. While I didn't like what he was doing and it made me uncomfortable, I had compassion for him. This isn;t saying Heidi was doing anything wrong, but it wasn't meeting his needs. She has no control over that and something terrible happened outside of her watch. It's not her fault. 

 

 

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 12:24pm

Kitsune said: "In the mean time, I'll be over here in my 2017 Tony Awards sulk cave”

I’m still bitter GROUNDHOG DAY didn’t win the Tony  

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 12:28pm

Exactly, Betty. It’s a messy situation. Like life - its not clean and easy to understand. It’s messy.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 12:45pm

In regards to the harsh film reviews, I think it’s fair for film critics to judge the movie as it is. Many who are defending the film know the source material inherently. Even I saw the show Off-Broadway and when it transferred, so I can compare the movie to the show and see how it translated. It’s fully possible that those who don’t know the details or machinations of the original show can find the film’s storytelling trite and preposterous. I for one thought that every song sounded the same, the approaches were all the same, and they cut all the songs that had any musical variety to the ballads that were kept in the film. Starting the film how they did also didn’t allow the audience to breathe and ease into it.

I found the slow-mo running in the forest laughable. My audience had many moments of unintentional laughter and groaning. (Jordan, perhaps we were at the same screening… did you experience that?)

I do wonder how this would have fared if the cast looked like the cast of High School Musical: The Musical: The Series. I know the actors in this film are all roughly the same age, but none of it seemed balanced to me. I also found no chemistry between Evan and Zoe, so Only Us seemed to come out of nowhere.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 12:52pm

We’re you at AMC 42nd St? If so, i didn’t hear any laughing or anything like that. There was one guy who said something like “ooooh sh*t” at one point and a few people chuckled. But I was surprised everyone was pretty silent during the film.

I personally thought the chemistry between Evan and Zoe was fine for the same reason mentioned above that they were in some way both needing each other at that moment. Outside of her brothers death there was no way they’d ever speak and I’m sure if this was reality their relationship would never last. But I’ve always felt that way about the two of them.

[seahag2]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:04pm

I went to a viewing that had a panel with cast members at the end, so I think most people who were there were big fans. Lots of sniffling throughout, haha. Curious to hear how regular audiences who have no prior knowledge of the musical will react once it opens in theatres because there are truly some wild twists and turns in this story. 

[SmokeyLady]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:15pm

Hollywood Bowl

 

t’s creepy. I know . But now I find myself obsessing over the hit his career might take . His Hollywood Bowl concert , which was announced with over the top fanfare , presales , etc… is barely selling . 

Updated On: 9/16/21 at 01:15 PM

[JSquared2]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:16pm

rattleNwoolypenguin said: "Can I just say if 50 percent of the show was the lie, and it got exposed and the rest of the 50 percent of the story was him getting canceled and we got to see both sides of the coin,

Him getting canonized and the performative social media element and then later the toxic cesspool of twitter canceling and him being terrorized and humiliated on a national level and trying to survive that THAT would be compelling.

That would be a brilliant show."

So feel free to go ahead and write THAT show -- THIS show (and film) tells the story that THESE writers wanted to say.

[DEHFanatic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:18pm

It's nice to see the advertising campaign in full swing.  Another new trailer and lots of new TV commercials.  I think the new trailer is really nice - and the TV commercials get better and better!  Here is the latest (they are all available on my channel):

https://youtu.be/jV0pJDit9Xs

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:29pm

Boy, some people are really defensive of this show. 

It's interesting when my points of view about why I found it offensive and contrived are so combatted. Especially when I praised it for the performances and the score.

I'm someone who loves a great morally grey story with screwed up compelling characters do not get me wrong. 

So the fact this property has missed the mark and in such a significant way in my opinion is a shame cause I want to champion new original thought provoking musicals. 

Here are the facts, people are going to continue to dog on this movie and it's not gonna be just bad faith dog piling (well maybe some will be after all Twitter is a cesspool haha) but because for a large amount of people it doesn't work and people share the exact sentiment I'm coming from. And especially when you tell a story that deals with suicide and death and mental health you're going to expect people acquainted with these experiences to be especially critical cause it feels closer to home. 

And if you love it as many do, and as many will do, that doesn't necessarily mean you can speak on how it affected someone else and invalidate where they're coming from.

Updated On: 9/16/21 at 01:29 PM

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:33pm

And the one thing I will say is you can't compare the criticism this film gets to Cats cause Cats is an escapist fantasy and entirely has to do with something being someone's "cup of tea"

It wasn't trying to capture something real. It was just stupid and people ragged on it for being a stupid movie and the jokes were low hanging fruit cause- look at the material haha

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 1:37pm

No. You’re confusing what’s being defended. I don’t care if someone likes the show or the movie. No skin of my a** if you don’t. What I AM defending is the right of this story being told in the first place - BIG difference.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:08pm

Ah, I was at Lincoln Square. I had the feeling my audience was not along for the ride. Lots of bursts of laughter and guffaws from a loud majority. I saw lots of people putting their heads in their hands and shrinking down in their seats. I’m sure there were many who cried and enjoyed it as well. Before the movie, they asked how many people had seen the musical and a large majority raised their hands. Interesting how differing opinions are.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:11pm

Before my screening , the rep said “You guys are gonna love it it’s so much fun!” And someone in the audience yelled out something like “You have no idea what this movies about do you?”

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:16pm

Hahahaha.

I will say… I finally get Larry. Thank you, Danny Pino, for keeping my attention, haha.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:20pm

I saw Pino at the bank a couple years ago and we were both wearing the same college football shirt and just totally beelined it to each other and talked football. A really cool guy.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:31pm

Das Pull Quotes! 

[unclevictor]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:45pm

BrodyFosse123 said: "Das Pull Quotes!

"

All the feels…if u ate rancid Chinese food

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 2:57pm

In the moment depicted in that poster, why does no one help him? That would have directly set up the song to reflect the lyric. That was one excruciating moment for me.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:02pm

The same reason why people can lay dying in the street and everyone’s too busy filming to call for help.

[jlindsey865]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:04pm

I'm not sure having to pull quotes from "Showbiz Cheat Sheet" is a great sign.

[DEHFanatic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:06pm

HeyMrMusic said: "In the moment depicted in that poster, why does no one help him? That would have directly set up the song to reflect the lyric. That was one excruciating moment for me."

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

Because at that point he still has not been found yet.  In his mind Connor is the one that "found" him at the park on the ground.  If somebody had come and helped him on the stage it would not really make sense with the story he's told himself (and we are being told).   Also it builds tension and adds to the fact of how alone he is.

I thought the way it was shot in the film was really effective.  In the trailers and commercials we see students with their cell phones out recording him but I always thought it was them recording YWBF once he starts singing.  But as we see in the film, they start to take their phones out to record him when he falls to no doubt post and MAKE FUN OF HIM.  It was a real gut punch.  Only it turns out to be the opposite as the scene progresses and we know what happens from there :)

edit: idk if my spoiler is working either so I'll repost text here. DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T WANT MOVIE SPOILERS

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Because at that point he still has not been found yet.  In his mind Connor is the one that "found" him at the park on the ground.  If somebody had come and helped him on the stage it would not really make sense with the story he's told himself (and we are being told).   Also it builds tension and adds to the fact of how alone he is.

I thought the way it was shot in the film was really effective.  In the trailers and commercials we see students with their cell phones out recording him but I always thought it was them recording YWBF once he starts singing.  But as we see in the film, they start to take their phones out to record him when he falls to no doubt post and MAKE FUN OF HIM.  It was a real gut punch.  Only it turns out to be the opposite as the scene progresses and we know what happens from there :)

Updated On: 9/16/21 at 03:06 PM

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:22pm

I understand what they were going for. I didn’t buy Alana, the principal, or the Murphys just letting it happen.

[Theater_Nerd]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:25pm

Oooh, I don't think I could stomach sitting through this. An ex-boyfriend of mine committed suicide last May. If someone did to his family what Evan Hansen does to Connor's in this show I'm pretty sure there would be hell-to-pay. 

The marketing for this film is extremely misleading, deceptive, and infuriating (much like its titular character) in regards to its content with some media outlets calling it "magical", "uplifting", "the right message at the right time". 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 9/16/21 at 3:27pm

Then don’t see it.