Review of The Greatest Showman (2017) by Carfan1999 — 31 Jan 2018

The Greatest Showman is directed by Michael Gracey and stars Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, and Rebecca Ferguson. Jackman plays P.T. Barnum and the story is about how he started what's now called Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. It's ironic that this movie was in production for 8 years and happened to be released the same year the actual circus shut down after 146 years. What's important to know is that this is not a biopic of P.T. Barnum. The movie's story is very loosely based off of his life, thus there are many changes from the real-life story. For example, Barnum created his circus when he was 60, but Jackman is only 49 and he wears no makeup that makes him look older.

The movie's story is very simple. It shows how Barnum goes from having nothing to opening a successful circus with unique people such as the bearded lady, a very tall man, very fat man, a little person, and so on. Then it shows how he got greedy, lost almost everything he built because of it, and how he corrects everything in the end. It's a simple story that's ok. There's no depth with any of the characters, but they are pleasant enough. The action is ok. Jackman overacts a bit, but you can tell that he's having a lot of fun. Surprisingly, ex-Disney channel star Zac Efron acted the best here, playing Barnum's partner. This is a musical and the songs are overall disappointing in my view. Instead of music that would have been typical of the 1800's, all the songs here are modern pop songs. They are pleasant to listen to, but generic and forgettable. Only one song, "This Is Me", stood out. The musical choreography and stunts are done quite well however.

In the end, The Greatest Showman is an ok movie musical that has a feel-good vibe to it. However, it is bland and generic in almost every way. If you like musicals or feel-good movies, you will probably like this. I was in the minority at the screening. I could hear people crying during parts and almost everyone clapped when the end credits started to roll. But as for me, a guy who's not really a musical fan, this was a pleasant enough, but forgettable movie.