Movie Man Darian Watching All Night Long

The Prom 

This film is a fun time you can’t help but smile all the way through! Now when this film was first announced a while back I was incredibly interested to see how the genius Ryan Murphy was going to adapt this onstage musical to the big screen. Now the result is a fun time I would be lying If I said I didn’t have fun that being said their are definitely flaws in this film that a times became hard to overcome. As the performances are incredibly strong and very fun to watch now the one performance that everyone will be talking about is Meryl Streep. Don’t get me wrong everyone in this is great from Nicole Kidman to Kerry Washington the performances are top notch. Meryl Steals the show with her over dramatic and energetic performance that lights up the screen. The film isn’t just all musical numbers it actually has something to say and a strong message at that. As yes the film centres around Broadway and  The Prom but there is so much more that gets touched upon that will surprise you how emotional the film does get at times.  The Prom is a film that leaves you feeling so happy and wanting to rewatch it the moment it finishes as it brings the music the fun and an emotional punch with great fun characters you will fall in love with Prom is a freaking blast. 

Firstly, This film explodes in colour in such vibrant colour and fun you can’t help but smile all the way through. The film has this fantastic engaging look to the frame that gets you instantly intrigued to what events are about to unfold in front of you. It takes a lot of themes and heavy tones all at once and at times it works to its benefit other times it results in messy execution. The film takes on the themes of acceptance, Bigotry and Narcissism. Now those aren’t light subjects to tackle and for the most part all of those themes I mentioned get presented in a very honest way.  As the film centres around this girl who prevents prom from happening because the faculty don’t want a person who is a homosexual to be attending prom so they cancel it so that no can go to it because of her sexuality. Now that is a pretty drastic choice to make over someones sexuality and the film very much takes it head on showing the heartbreaking reality of how it impacts this girls life and everything around her. That part of the story was shown incredibly realistic same goes for how the celebrities this film also centres arounds only help her to get good publicity and their intentions are pretty selfish to help a girl in need in order to make themselves appear as better people. They are so full of themselves and they don’t learn until the film progresses that their intentions was pretty shallow to begin with and then they start o realize it’s about helping others and not expecting to do it just to appear better but because it’s the right thing to do to help this girl have a good prom and not let her  be torn down. Then you have the bigotry which is incredibly heart shattering at times because they don’t sugarcoat the discrimination of people who aren’t straight or same sex whatsoever they show how shallow and cruel and totally malicious people will be in order to shut others out and it’s honestly disgusting but that also means Ryan Murphy captured a very real frame of what that looks like up close it’s not pretty it’s ugly and he shows it for what it is. The films only flaw it has was their were certain times in the film where you would have a great serious moment in the film and then it just Segways to a comedic or musical moment where they instead could of dug deeper into it from a dramatic point of view but instead trades it for comedic value. I have no problem having comedy but you need to know your timing of where to place it because if you put it right after a highly serious moment in the film it seems either rushed or just weirdly placed. And there are moments where that happens and they don’t give the heavier moments time to breath. That would be my only complaint with how the film executed the story. 

Secondly, The performances in this film is fantastic! Everyone in this film all gave dazzling performances from the likes of Kerry Washington, Nicole Kidman and even Kegan Michael Key. But the scene stealer of this film is Meryl freaking Streep who plays this established actress who in her hey day was the most celebrated actress and now is holding onto her career by the thinest rope. She attempts at anything for a comeback and to keep her relevance In the spotlight. I would say this is one of Meryl’s best performances in years now she was great in the Post back in 2017 but I would go as far as saying this performance is even superior to that performance. Now the only weak performance in this film is James Corden and their is a lot of problems I have with his portrayal of the character he plays in this film. James Corden plays Berry who is a very flamboyant and as the film progresses we learn he is also gay. Now there are tons of actors in tons of movies that have played gay characters and there hasn’t been a problem because the people that have depicted them present those characters honestly. What James does to the portrayal of this character that is offensive is that he plays the character in very much of a way that comes across as a stereotype and way to over the top. That is the biggest flaw in the film is James Corden’s performance I personally also think he was miscast and Neil Patrick Harris would have been a way stronger and better choice to play the character. But besides James Corden’s performance that definitely is the weakest part of the film everyone else gives great work with Meryl giving some of her best work in years.  

Lastly, The Prom is a fun glittery filled fun film that will have a smile on your face the entire time. From the great fun performances given by Nicole Kidman, Andrew Rannells, Keegan - Michael Key and then a scene stealing performance by Meryl Streep. It brings the amazing songs to great life with fantastic heart and humour while also delivering a message that will tug at your heart strings. The Prom is a fun film you’ll want to watch again the moment it is over. 

When a girls dream of taking the girl she loves to prom is canceled due to her sexuality Broadway stars come to the rescue to make her prom a reality 

Rated PG - 13 : Thematic Elements|Suggestive/Sexual References|Language

Meryl Streep : Streep gives one of the best performances of her career in this film! She plays this washed up actress who was the biggest star in her hey day and constantly fights to stay in the spotlight to show her relevance. Now the way Meryl plays her is comedic yes but incredibly emotional as well. She brings this very human quality to her that is revealed underneath the layers of humour and emotional toughness. As when we first meet her she is very witty and funny but we find out later on why she is that way. She uses her humour and wit as defence mechanism to hide her feelings of being Hurt over the years and it is  sad but Meryl finds that sadness and brings it out in a very emotional scene that will have you in tears. What I find so amazing about her performance in this film is that she walks this fine line between comedy and hard hitting emotional depth and she plays both of those layers brilliantly. Meryl has amazing comedic timing as a lot of her humour is very dry and is never flashy which is what I loved about it though because the comedy always landed because she knew when to go for a fun joke and when to pull back. She revels so much about this complex person in a multi layered performance that has her showing so much of her strengths from comedy to drama and both mix brilliantly. You can also see her having so much fun in this role and she chews up every scene she is in giving this role her absolute all. She brings that fun charm that will have you smiling all the way through. Meryl dances she makes you laugh and cry she brings it all in a performance that is honestly one of the best performances she has ever given. 

Ryan Murphy : Murphy gives a fun blast while also delivering an important message! Ryan Murphy directed one of my favourite films which was The Normal Heart so I know he can direct. Here he brings a colourful fun time for audiences to enjoy and he gets the likes of Nicole Kidman, Keegan - Michael Key and then the always charismatic Meryl Streep who gives one of the best performances of her career. He on top of the great performances he gets from his cast he drives home a very deep message of accepting others regardless of their sexuality. On top of that very emotional message he drives to audiences he shows the total heartbreaking agony that they also go through from horrible bullying and horrible tactics they would go to in order to make sure they got no prom. He shows the ugliness for what it is and then shows the pure happiness as also giving this even balanced look of both perspectives. While also staying faithful to the musical it is based upon and delivering the musical numbers in this very stylish and fun way that is incredibly memorable. If only the casting of Berry was switched it would of been a flawless musical but besides that Ryan gave such strong direction adapting this already popular musical to the big screen with a fantastic cast of actors and a touching message to walk away with.