I was thinking whilst driving the van about the differences between movie and theatre critics, especially when it comes to musicals. This was because I couldn’t listen to my normal music; we had someone on a cell phone to Hong Kong the entire ride back. Anyway, what prompted this were the reviews I’ve been reading about the new “Producers” movie musical. Most critics don’t like it. Why?
Not the story.
Not the acting.
But because it is too much like the stage production.
Then I thought about the recent movie musical “Rent“. Again, the critics didn’t like it. Why?
Not the story.
Not the acting.
But because it is too much like the stage production.
Then I though back to the movie musical “Chicago“. The critics loved it. Why?
Not the acting.
Not the story.
Because it was a bold reimagining of the stage production.
Theatre critics look at the book. They look at the music and lyrics. They look at the acting. They accept the production for what it is: a stage show.
Movie critics seem to look at different things. They look at the cinematography. They look at how the source was adapted for the screen. They don’t want to see something that is true to the source (don’t believe me: look at how many people criticized various Harry Potter movies for being too true to the book). In particular, they don’t want stage productions captured on film to be the original: they want them to be movies. This is what gave us such travesties as Lucille Ball as Mame, Barbra Streisand as Dolly, and the mishmash that was Milos Foreman’s Hair. Musicals, yes. But not the magic that was on stage. So when a musical is captured so as to preserve that magic, it is destroyed by the critics.
The movie musical “Chicago” is good. But it is something different than the stage production; it loses the feel that the original stage production had of pointing out various styles. Similarly, the musical of “Cabaret“, although excellent, is very different than the stage production. Similarly with Sweet Charity, and numerous other successful and positively rated movie musicals.
They also forget one other thing: Most people don’t live in places that get decent touring productions of these shows… and most people can’t afford to pay the $80/ticket for decent seats for these shows if they do. So, by capturing what was the stage production, more people can see the magic that is live theatre (even if on film), at a somewhat affordable price.
Pundits are dangerous, be they political or artistical. Art is not in the mind of the critic; art is in the mind of the person that sees, hears, and experiences the art.
And speaking of artists: a moment of silence for John Spencer, who died today at the age of 58 of a heart attack. Spencer played Leo McGarry on “The West Wing”; he also played Tommy Mullaney on L.A. Law.
