The Greatest Showman
Miranda Olsen
“The Greatest Showman” is a 2017 musical film based on the life of P.T Barnum, directed by Michael Gracey, starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, Rebecca Ferguson, Zendaya, and more. Original musicals are notoriously difficult to green light, and the project was announced years ago in 2009. The Award winning songwriting duo Pasek and Paul were chosen for the film (having previously worked on La La Land). The film features the story of P.T Barnum, the son of a tailor, who has big dreams. He meets a young socialite named Charity, and falls in love. Their class differences get in the way, however, they keep in touch through letters. Phineas, P.T, refuses to give up on their relationship. Years pass, and he ends up marrying Charity, despite her father’s disapproval, and they move to New York City.
Life is no cherry pie, though. Phineas loses his job, and is forced to find a new one. He cheats the bank out of real collateral, and gets a loan to open a Museum of oddities. Even in Victorian times, however, morbid curiosities are still only appealing to a niche audience. Barnum’s children suggest he sell tickets to see something alive. Barnum realizes he still wants to show oddities-just living oddities. He gathers giants, dwarfs, tattooed men, albino’s, and more. He renames his museum Barnum’s Circus. Despite bad reviews and violent protestors, Barnum and his performers triumph, and even though their Circus building burns down, they switch to tents, and continue to perform for the masses. The film is visually stunning, with an extremely talented cast who had backgrounds in music, such as Jackman, Efron, Williams, and Zendaya. With a mere budget of $84 million, the film has now grossed over $400 million, and is officially the highest grossing live-action musical of all time. As someone who writes screenplays, I noticed the clever dialogue and the smooth transitions into song. Transitioning from speaking to singing is notoriously difficult to blend in a way that’s not awkward or cheesy. The Greatest Showman does a fantastic job. The writers for the film were Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon. Bicks wrote much of the hit show Sex In The City, but Condon worked on The Twilight series and the live action Beauty And The Beast. It is his work with Disney that allowed such magic on the screen of The Greatest Showman. This film is magical, musical, and without a doubt-worth a watch.