Really Enjoyable

Rating: 10/10 (14 February 2015)

A real treat. What makes Clint Eastwood such a great filmmaker is that even when he has no real personal involvement in a project he's still able to create a solid, beautifully crafted entertainment--he proves that when the time comes, he can let go of the serious themes that are so crucial to his oeuvre and simply enjoy the moment. Adapted from the jukebox musical by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elise (who wrote the musical's book), Eastwood, retaining the conceit of having the performers address the audience, opens up the play's sparse staging to capture an essence of Jersey in the Fifties (with an affectionate nod to Scorsese); he easily highlights the humor in the development of the Four Seasons from hoodlums with talent to a polished professional quartet and masterfully paces the film as it transitions to more melodramatic, yet equally compelling, conflicts. You can tell Eastwood really likes this material. Although some may find the characterizations cheesy, they're performed with eagerness and sincerity, with particular notice to be paid to Vincent Piazza as Tommy DeVito, whose id proves to be the group's undoing. As it was onstage, the songs are the thing (although, as Frankie Valli, John Lloyd Young's falsetto seems a little rough) and their significance in popular music cannot be overstated; indeed, a case could be made for writer/producer Bob Gaudio being one of the most important musicians of the twentieth century.