As my friends and I parked at the movie theater and began trekking through the dark, dreary, rainy Saturday night earlier this month, I was a bit disconcerted.
This was my first time at this particular theater, and I had heard someone say the previous week that this theater (which shall remain anonymous to protect its identity) was sketchy and had either a rat or cockroach problem (I can’t remember which). I brushed off my concerns as we waited in line outside to get our tickets, but I soon discovered that this theater was actually more different than every other theater I’ve been to than I thought.
The first odd thing that happened occurred as I was purchasing my ticket. A movie theater employee asked me for my ID for the first time in my life, which was strange considering I was a 19-year-old seeing a PG movie. Once we entered the dimly lit lobby, I noticed three things: the smell of burnt popcorn immediately invading my nostrils, a theater lobby that was smaller than any other I’ve ever been in and the lack of a huge crowd.
After opting not to get popcorn and settling for a small Pepsi, my friends and I made our way down the long dimly lit hallway to the third screening room on the left (which was also much smaller than I had imagined). We found seats about halfway up, made ourselves comfortable in reclining seats that only halfway reclined (no rats scurrying over our feet), and sat staring at a blank screen.
Back home, the theater showed commercials before the previews began. No commercials played here, just awkward silence made more apparent by the fact that there were only about three other people in the room with us. We chatted before the movie, but it seemed like forever.
Everyone had been talking about The Greatest Showman for months, and I had heard nothing but good things about this movie. Many of whom I talked to had seen it multiple times. I was excited to finally see what all of the talk was about, and the dark, silent screen seemed only to increase my anticipation.
The movie finally began, and I immediately forgot about all of the not-so-pleasant aspects of the theater and was transported into another world. I became absolutely mesmerized by the rhythm, the music and the vibrant colors. The first line of the first song seemed to support my feelings of anticipation: “Ladies and gents, this is the moment you’ve waited for.”
Now, I’m not that big into musicals. I would rather have a compelling storyline over a ton of songs being strung together and repeated in a movie any day, and, although I was excited for the film, I was still pretty skeptical. But everyone’s been raving about it, so it can’t be that bad right?
Well, it turns out that The Greatest Showman has a compelling storyline and is an amazing musical. The modern musical style may not fit the time period of the movie, but one can overlook all of the historical inaccuracies in the film. All of the songs are catchy and beautiful and are the kind of songs you can listen to over and over again. Strong voices and breathtaking music and dances, along with the rhythm and colors, make you want to sing along or dance or stomp your feet. It’s one of those movies where you feel like you’re a part of the performance or at the very least want to be a part of it.
The Greatest Showman tells the story of P.T. Barnum, founder of the Barnum and Bailey Circus, and his rise from nothing to create the world of show business. Hugh Jackman plays Barnum, who returns to marry his childhood best friend, despite disapproval from her wealthy family. As they begin to build their life together and have two daughters, Barnum loses his job and wants more for his family, although his wife is more than content with the simple life that they have. He eventually comes up with the idea to start a show made up of “freaks” and begins to find the outcasts of society, including a woman with a beard, a fat man, a tall man, a short man and trapeze dancers.
Despite growing popularity, Barnum abandons his troupe to go on tour with singer Jenny Lind, losing sight of what’s truly important: his family and the people he’s impacted.
This film is about taking risks, the meaning of success, the dignity of man, the value of people over wealth and status. It is about embracing the outcasts, the ignored or forgotten, of society. It is, as the theater critic in the movie says, “a celebration of humanity.”
My favorite four songs in the movie are “The Greatest Show,” “A Million Dreams,” “This Is Me” and “Rewrite the Stars.”
“The Greatest Show,” the song that opens and closes the movie, is upbeat and celebratory. “A Million Dreams,” sung throughout the movie by various characters, including Barnum and his wife as children and as adults as well as their daughters, sweetly captures childhood innocence and aspirations. “This Is Me,” sung by the circus performers as they march through a gala they were shunned from, is bold and vibrant.
“Rewrite the Stars” is a love song between Zac Efron and Zendaya’s characters and a fierce testament to the power of love despite one coming from a high class and one from the fringes of society, respectively. (In other words, it’s a song with more depth than the ones during Efron’s time on High School Musical.)
As the last line of “The Greatest Show” reverberated throughout the room, I was brought back to reality. The reviews had been true. The movie had captivated me. I would be more than willing to go back to see it another time. The Greatest Showman was truly the greatest.
