DEAR EVAN HANSEN Movie Musical - News & Discussion Thread — Page 31

Theatre Fan3 said: "I have an idea he probably thought that this was his chance to join the elite "EGOT" club. Well slim chance of that happening this time around. He does seem to come off as a bit of a "spoiled and entitled rich kid" but I can't help but feel a bit sorry for him that, after all the accolades and praise he received for his stage performance, that this is where it has ended up. What's the old adage ... isn't it "better to go out while you're on top"? Now, unfortunately, this will forever cast a shadow over his connection with the show."

Mmm I actually wondered if he and others thought this would be a Barbara Streisand Funny Girl type event for him.

binau said: "Theatre Fan3 said: "I have an idea he probably thought that this was his chance to join the elite "EGOT" club. Well slim chance of that happening this time around. He does seem to come off as a bit of a "spoiled and entitled rich kid" but I can't help but feel a bit sorry for him that, after all the accolades and praise he received for his stage performance, that this is where it has ended up. What's the old adage ... isn't it "better to go out while you're on top"? Now, unfortunately, this will forever cast a shadow over his connection with the show."

Mmm I actually wondered if he and others thought this would be a Barbara Streisand Funny Girl type event for him."

That very well might have been their thinking but the time lapse between the original Broadway production of Funny Girl and the film version was only 4 years (probably only a 2 1/2 - 3 yr gap if you are going by when filming commenced) ... plus any aging in that time span was not nearly as much of an issue considering the characters age in the show. I don't know how old Fanny Brice was supposed to have been during the time frame of the show/film but Streisand's age between stage and film wasn't nearly as obvious as Ben Platt's.

Updated On: 9/11/21 at 02:27 PM

They could have done that. With CGI as good as it is these days, they could have de-aged him. If it worked in the The Irishman, it could have worked here. And those guys were deaged by decades.

His hair should have been cropped, like it was in 2017. He looked a lot younger.

Yeah, you're right. He would have looked like a baby or something. And of course this film does NOT have the big old Netflix budget of $250 million.

ijest22 said: "I feel like we’re rushing to judgment here. Most posters haven’t seen the movie yet, and a sizable portion of the reviewers hate the source material. Let’s wait to see it. Honestly, if it makes money, these initial bad reviews will be dismissed. Even if not, for those who love the Broadway show, it may turn out to be ok."

People are brutal on here about any movie musical. Making fun of Ben and tearing the movie down has become an Olympic sport on here. It's pretty pathetic. I'm seeing it very soon and I cannot wait, I think it looks great. And bad reviews don't really matter, just ask any failed movie that became a cult classic.

I could FEEL his anxiety and he sang beautifully while crying. It was a perfect, brilliant performance that he deserved every single accolade for. Not one male has ever come close to his Evan.

I guess I’m waiting to hear a reaction from someone who liked the musical, the music and Ben’s performance (I believe there are a few of us in that category), who has actually seen the movie, as to whether it’s a good film adaptation and how it holds up to the stage version. I have to dismiss any review that doesn’t like the music. I like the music, and from what I’ve heard of the soundtrack, they haven’t messed with it too much. Maybe I’ll agree that Ben doesn’t convince on screen as a teenager, but so what? If I can give a pass to Julie Harris, I’m open to this.

ijest22 said: "I feel like we’re rushing to judgment here. Most posters haven’t seen the movie yet, and a sizable portion of the reviewers hate the source material. Let’s wait to see it. Honestly, if it makes money, these initial bad reviews will be dismissed. Even if not, for those who love the Broadway show, it may turn out to be ok. "

I saw the preview again tonight. And maybe it will be a disaster, but so many of these harsh reviews just hate the plot. That’s been a source of controversy since the musical debuted, and we’re all familiar with the arguments.

The other big critique is Platt’s performance in the film and I can’t judge that. I haven’t seen the movie. It feels like critics are really gunning for him. Maybe he really is awful, but there’s something odd about the level of vitriol directed at a performance that got so much praise on Broadway. I saw the show at the Music Box 4 years ago. He was ‘too old’ then too.

I neither loved nor hated the stage musical. I am honestly curious about the film and think it’s very premature to label it a flop. The musical remains the biggest post-Hamilton new show in terms of popularity. It has toured very well in the United States. Postmortems about what went wrong seem to be getting ahead of themselves.

I really REALLY don't understand why everyone all of a sudden cares about 27 year olds playing high schoolers. It happens quite regularly, and often with people I think look significantly older than Ben Platt does.