Review of Cradle Will Rock (1999) by Alex M — 24 Feb 2004

[size=3]Director Tim Robbins, whose left-wing policies are well-known in Hollywood, helms this fascinating (if occasionally slow-developing) depiction of the true story of a 1930s theatre group who dared to feature strongly socialist messages in the plays they performed. The movie focuses on the development and production of a controversial new play called "The Cradle Will Rock", which depicts a group of steel workers deciding to form a union and protest. While the play is a relatively innocent musical, various powers are fearful that it might incite industrial unrest and be interpreted as pro-Communist. [i]Cradle Will Rock [/i]unfolds by presenting the various personalities that were involved in the production, and the ensuing scandal. Many of them are familiar names: Angus MacFayden plays the young Orson Welles, who was the principal creative force behind the production; John Cusack plays Nelson Rockefeller; and Ruben Blades plays the famous artist Diego Rivera. There are a number of other wonderful actors fleshing out the smaller roles in this film, and Robbins has assembled an ensemble so expansive that it rivals those of Robert Altman. Although Robbins is clearly a liberal, [i]Cradle Will Rock [/i]is quite funny and insightful because Robbins shows the political compromises that each of the principal characters is forced to make. The problem with [i]Cradle Will Rock [/i]is that, noble as it may be, it often proceeds at a slow pace, and several scenes are not as well-developed as they could have been. And Robbins' final treatment of the blue-bloods who tried to prevent the play from being staged is a tad cartoonish. Still, [i]Cradle Will Rock [/i]is an ambitious and relatively successful venture by Robbins, a bizarre combination of screwball comedy and socially-relevant drama. While the film is flawed, I am certainly happy that Robbins did not face as many challenges as Welles in bringing his vision to an audience. [/size].

[size=3](BASIC)[/size].