Has anyone seen this?
I'd give it a marginal thumbs up. I have to give credit to the director, Bill Condon, for expanding the musical format to an almost operatic scale, where ordinary dialogue is not spoken but sung. It's ambitious.
The movie runs a little over 2 hours but somehow feels very long. It needs editing. Any side story involving Beyonce should have been cut. It's a sleepy movie unless Jennifer Hudson or Eddie Murphy are on screen. Hudson is wonderful. What a voice! And she embodies her character to a T. Eddie Murphy was better than I've seen him in a long time. Both of them were quite moving.
The music is great, but there's just too much of it. I think they could have cut several songs.
At any rate, I recommend the film, if you like musicals, and do try to see it in the theater. It's a larger than life movie.
Reading is freedom.
The mind soars, no earthly cares,
no limitations.
A Maggers Haiku, 2005
Years ago my mother used to say to me... "In this world, Elwood, you can be oh so smart or oh so pleasant."
Well, for years I was smart.
I recommend pleasant.
You may quote me.
Elwood P. Dowd