HAMILTON!

Tools    





The Adventure Starts Here!
It's been nearly a week since the world was graced with the film version of the hit Broadway play HAMILTON through Disney Plus. What do you all think?

I went into this having only heard "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Hamilton Polka," and knowing that it was based in hip-hop, of which I am NOT a fan. (Yeah, that's a pathetic set of stuff to go into this with, I know.)

But I love Lin-Manuel Miranda's energy any time I've seen him appear somewhere. (And he asked "Weird Al" to speak at his dedication of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, so...)

ANYWAY...

Aside from the fact that I was freaked out to see Jonathan Groff (whom I know only from the Netflix series Mindhunter) as King George III, I fell in love with this show. (Also, I had NO idea that guy could sing. I had never seen Glee or Frozen.)

By the time the intermission hit, there was no turning back. I watched it with the subtitles on (like I watch most stuff these days), and the intricacies in the turns of phrase throughout the entire 2.5 hours of the show astounded me. Even if Miranda's the weak link in the cast (in terms of singing or even acting), the man revitalized Broadway singlehandedly, while teaching us a little history and making it accessible to all walks of life. The man's a genius.

And it's hard not to love the performances of Daveed Diggs as Jefferson and Leslie Odom Jr. as Burr.

Since last Friday, I've lost count of how many times I've watched this movie, often having it on in the background while I'm working (like now!). I downloaded the cast recording to play in my car, and it's now my third or fourth favorite musical. (Other faves are Sweeney Todd, Chicago, and Les Miserables.)

So... what do the rest of you think?



I heard about this and balanced the cost of a Roku streaming device and a Disney subscription against $1000 tickets and decided to do something else on my next New York junket. I have to preface this with the fact that I'm not a fan of musicals, but Hamilton has been enough of a phenomenon that I was curious.

It didn't disappoint. Lin-Manual Miranda's tour-de-force of writing script, lyrics and music, as well as performing in the lead role really impressed me. Music was great, lyrics (as much as I could make out) were good and the story held it all together. Sets were fine, performers excellent and, for a couple hours during this lockdown, I was in the Big Apple, on Broadway, having a good evening. Hamilton was from New York, Miranda from Inwood (upper Manhattan) and being on Broadway made it seem like a subway play.

As much as I can like a musical, I did enjoy Hamilton.



The Adventure Starts Here!
Try watching it again with subtitles on. You'll really start to appreciate the word play. That's a lot of intricate writing to get 2.5 hours of lyrics to weave together so well.

And I was really glad that they did this as a filmed version of the stage play and NOT as a "film adaptation" like that horror show that came from Burton's version of Sweeney Todd. My preferred version of that play is the filmed stage play (with audience) with George Hearn and Angela Lansbury.

Another thing I appreciated about this film was seeing how the sets work. The dual revolving floors were utilized well, and the simple moving stairs that were used as stairs and also gangways on/off ships worked brilliantly. Less is more, IMHO, so that I could focus on those lyrics and that singing.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
I really want to see Hamilton, but I don't get Disney+. I'll be watching for it to be released on DVD eventually.
__________________
.
If I answer a game thread correctly, just skip my turn and continue with the game.
OPEN FLOOR.



I probably will watch it again since we have the Disney+ subscription now. Not surprisingly, while you can get a free Disney+ trial account for a month, but it does NOT include Hamilton, which was the only reason we did subscribe. When I watch again, I just might turn on the subtitles because I was aware of missing a lot of lyrics.



Sorry if I'm rude but I'm right
Kinda like the greatest rap battles of history but 155 minutes too long. Music's perfectible, don't care for the story but I'd still sing along: Da da da da dayada!!!

__________________
Look, I'm not judging you - after all, I'm posting here myself, but maybe, just maybe, if you spent less time here and more time watching films, maybe, and I stress, maybe your taste would be of some value. Just a thought, ya know.



If I paid a grand for tickets to the live show, I'd want an a.....w......ful lot of minutes.



The Adventure Starts Here!
I subscribed for a month at $7.99. Now I'm taking in a lot of the Disney vault for the rest of the month. Totally worth it.

Also, I wouldn't call the show a rap battle of any sort. (There is one scene that IS a rap battle, on purpose.) The songs are a mix of classic Broadway, R&B, and moody ballads. Easily singable even for ME and I am NO fan of rap or hip-hop.

Anyway, I'm sportin' a small crush on King George this week.



I'm not a rap fan at all, nor a fan of musicals, but Hamilton injected some fresh energy into both of those tired concepts. Lots of physical energy, non-stop action, great ensemble work and Miranda's performance made it work.



I know of the praises and the hysteria for tickets of the live performances, and have seen small snippets on TV. Seems like a 'rap' based musical? Too bad. I have no interest in Rap. When (if) the movie becomes available for a free watch, I will check it out. Maybe I might like it. I have seen musicals that I extremely liked in the past... Evita, Jersey Boys, Million Dollar Quartet. It will take a lot to have me put Hamilton into that category.



I'm not a rap fan either, but, fortunately, the show transcends that genre, also has music, songs and and ensemble dance. It's fast moving with end-to-end action. I was glad this was available since I didn't want to build a New York trip around it, but if I saw it I wanted original cast, not a road company, which already was in Baltimore. For something that's been so much of a phenomenon, I thought I had to see it somehow and this worked. If you have the right streaming device, you can get a one month subscription to Disney+ for a few bucks. This show is a promotion for the service, but the free month plan doesn't get it.



It's been nearly a week since the world was graced with the film version of the hit Broadway play HAMILTON through Disney Plus. What do you all think?

I went into this having only heard "Weird Al" Yankovic's "Hamilton Polka," and knowing that it was based in hip-hop, of which I am NOT a fan. (Yeah, that's a pathetic set of stuff to go into this with, I know.)

But I love Lin-Manuel Miranda's energy any time I've seen him appear somewhere. (And he asked "Weird Al" to speak at his dedication of his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, so...)

ANYWAY...

Aside from the fact that I was freaked out to see Jonathan Groff (whom I know only from the Netflix series Mindhunter) as King George III, I fell in love with this show. (Also, I had NO idea that guy could sing. I had never seen Glee or Frozen.)

By the time the intermission hit, there was no turning back. I watched it with the subtitles on (like I watch most stuff these days), and the intricacies in the turns of phrase throughout the entire 2.5 hours of the show astounded me. Even if Miranda's the weak link in the cast (in terms of singing or even acting), the man revitalized Broadway singlehandedly, while teaching us a little history and making it accessible to all walks of life. The man's a genius.

And it's hard not to love the performances of Daveed Diggs as Jefferson and Leslie Odom Jr. as Burr.

Since last Friday, I've lost count of how many times I've watched this movie, often having it on in the background while I'm working (like now!). I downloaded the cast recording to play in my car, and it's now my third or fourth favorite musical. (Other faves are Sweeney Todd, Chicago, and Les Miserables.)

So... what do the rest of you think?
I had no idea you were a Broadway fan...you mentioned Sweeney Todd, Chicago, and Les Miz, and I was just curious what you thought of the film versions of those musicals?



The Adventure Starts Here!
Well, the only one of those three I've seen on stage is Sweeney Todd (three different productions--very different from each other!). The other two I've seen *only* the movie adaptations.

I loved the first production I saw of Sweeney Todd, back in the mid-1980s when it was a lot newer. It was staged much like the Hearns/Lansbury version with the revolving four-way set. So was the most recent production I saw last year. The touring production I saw (the most professional of the three) was a few years ago, and frankly, I hated it. They were being avant garde, and each of the main characters not only played their usual parts but also sat and played INSTRUMENTS during some of the other parts. And they didn't have the revolving set--it was some horrid, difficult-to-follow adaptation that did NOT work. Very confusing.

If I had the chance to see either Chicago or Les Mis on stage, I would TOTALLY grab the opportunity! Of course, at this point in time, that ain't happening any time soon, is it?



The Adventure Starts Here!
Also, I did love the film versions of Chicago and Les Mis (but not by comparison to a stage play version--just on their own merits).

I did NOT like the Johnny Depp film version of Sweeney Todd, and I usually enjoy watching Depp. He was okay, but not the Sweeney I love. It was like Burton insisted on sucking all the campy humor out of the story and songs. And Helena Bonham Carter cannot sing to save her life. SO MANY of her lines and songs were LOST due to her inability to enunciate the lyrics properly. Completely loses the cleverness of that character.

There. I've said it.



You can't make a rainbow without a little rain.
Also, I did love the film versions of Chicago and Les Mis (but not by comparison to a stage play version--just on their own merits).

I did NOT like the Johnny Depp film version of Sweeney Todd, and I usually enjoy watching Depp. He was okay, but not the Sweeney I love. It was like Burton insisted on sucking all the campy humor out of the story and songs. And Helena Bonham Carter cannot sing to save her life. SO MANY of her lines and songs were LOST due to her inability to enunciate the lyrics properly. Completely loses the cleverness of that character.

There. I've said it.

I saw the Broadway version of Les Mis with Colm Wilkinson, and it was phenomenal. I love the movie version too, and I love Hugh Jackman, (in Les Mis, and in just about everything he does), but IMO, nobody can shine Colm Wilkinson's shoes as Jean Valjean.

It's like trying to replace Michael Crawford as The Phantom of the Opera. It just can't be done.

I liked the Depp version of Sweeney Todd, but it's nowhere near as good as the Broadway version with Len Cariou.



Yeah, it's really good.

You don't have to be a fan of hip-hop to enjoy it, the speedy spoken-word style is a natural fit for theater anyway, and theater in general should've taken a page from that book awhile ago. And I'm not sure I believe anyone who says they don't like <entire genre of music> anyway, since that usually means they don't like some of the culture around it (which, sometimes, fair enough), and not that they wouldn't like the best it has to offer with some digging (which means also that not liking something really means "I probably could but the amount of effort relative to other types of music disincentivizes me to explore it). Anyway:

The music is very good. The performances are very good. The lyrics are often exceptional, and yes, I'd second the idea of watching it with subtitles on. It'll dampen a few jokes, but a) not much, and b) it's worth it to make sure you catch all the wordplay thrown around. I was genuinely impressed by how many different refrains folded together naturally with others, particularly right before the intermission. Great stuff.



And yes, King George totally steals the show.




Adding some things I forgot to mention:

When I heard of the concept, a lot of really cringeworthy things went through my mind, of the Shakespeare-was-the-first-rapper Dangerous Minds style shoehorning. Like, some dude with a mic strutting across the stage barking out "SEVENTEEN. SEVENTY SIX!" And there are a few moments where Hamilton sounds exactly like the silly self-parody I imagined when I heard it existed, but thankfully those moments are really few and far between.

Miranda is the right person for this blend, because he's not a hip-hop enthusiast trying to update the musical, he's clearly a lover of the theater and its history and is trying to improve it, not replace it. To mix or transcend or improve on a genre I think you have to really love it for what it is already, and he clearly does. I think Hamilton is more likely to make musical lovers out of hip-hop fans than the other way around, if anything.



I appreciated that it did not get stuck, but kept moving, style-wise. My comment about generally not liking either traditional musicals or rap pointed to how the show didn't get stuck in either place, which would have lost my interest completely. All of the different elements came together real well. I definitely did NOT want to pay a grand to see it on Broadway and, truthfully didn't want to pay a hundred to see a road show in Baltimore, so, given my resistance, I was quite pleased that I actually liked it. Given my feeling about rap and musicals, that's a complement.

Hamilton himself (the actual person), is a fascinating topic for a show like that. Given that he was a person of "dubious" heritage from the islands, he's a fascinating outsider character among the founders, a genius of some sort, but never completely understood by his peers. Having such a deliberately diverse cast and musical style seems to work for him in a way that would never suit guys like Washington or Jefferson.