No History Lesson, Just Joy

Rating: 8/10 (20 January 2018)

If ever there were a musical that can get away with manipulative character development, hokey plot lines, and complete misrepresentation of history with 9 layers of gloss, the story of P.T. Barnum would be it. The Greatest Showman leans so heavily on just a few (but marvelous) elements that it's hard to imagine that the whole tent doesn't just come crashing down. There's a good reason you might find it hard to believe that the 1850's New York portrayed in Greatest Showman, takes place (concurrently) only blocks from the filthy streets in Gangs of New York. That's because it didn't. We are being shown a shamelessly white-washed fairy tale that cares little to educate, but will do anything to dazzle... P.T. Barnum would've been proud.
How Barnum differs from other historical figures of his ilk is that he's more fascinating than beloved. If you were to shake his hand after a show, marveling at his pomp and costume, you may also be tempted to check for your wallet as you walk away. So, when a movie like The Greatest Showman oversimplifies the exploits of history's biggest perpetrator of exploitation, it might as well swing for the fences.
The film begins with silent movie titles and heavy beats that evoke The Colosseum and Imagine Dragons. Hugh Jackman's whisper carries us into the opening number "Greatest Show," which lets you know this movie hinges and sustains its fate on the music. A powerful choir punctuates Jackman's capable baritone as the track moves seamlessly from punk, to rock, to hip-hop, to vaudeville. The cynic in me retired from the on-deck circle and told my inner-child to grab a bat. For the rest of the evening I was smiling like a fool and singing 9 of the catchiest songs I've heard written for a single movie in... maybe ever. If your only bellwether for Jackman's musical talents is Les Miserables, just know that the man had a Tony on his shelf years before he donned the adamantium claws. He is more than up to the challenge.
When the fantasy of The Greatest Show fades into Barnum's childhood, forlornly gazing at a ringleader costume at his father's tailor shop, we see that the dream sequence isn't far removed from the movies slick set pieces. We settle on his childhood for just long enough to get the next number, A Million Dreams. Ellis Rubin's remarkable vocals carry us into the adult Barnum where Jackman and new bride Michelle Williams dance on the roof of a decrepit tenement building where they start a family with two adorable daughters. The music picks back up on the roof to the same tune of A Million Dreams, just three octaves higher. I sat in me seat thinking, "I don't know if my heart can handle it if these little girls start singing," I hid my face behind my Coke.
Barnum's rise to power at this point is rushed through with little conflict. I'll confess to being a bit disappointed at the low gravity of the adventure. An Ocean's 11 style sequence gets the gang of "freaks" together for Barnum's risky start-up. He funds this through means appropriate to the character. Jackman takes Barnum into highs that are glittering and lows that never feel too low. The story is not quite as weak as the songs are strong, making it all very forgivable. For example, Barnum turns away from his business and family after hearing a single song from an opera singer (Rebecca Ferguson.) How good would that song have to be for that plot turn to make sense? You'll see.
You might not be surprised to find that Jackman, Efron, Zendaya, and Keala Settle (of Broadway fame) bring powerful voices and dancing to the film. So you may be delighted to hear that Michelle Williams keeps up with seeming ease, even soloing her own number, Tightrope. Ferguson is the only first billed member that is dubbed over, though it is done wonderfully by The Voice contestant, Loren Allred.
I walked out of The Greatest Showman feeling like I hadn't learned a single thing about P.T. Barnum's real life. There may be a movie one day that aims to reveal the fascination and ugliness of Barnum's time, personal flaws, and impact on the world. That is not this film. The Greatest Showman is a celebration of the lie that Barnum sold the world for decades. Even after they all knew it was a gimmick by a gifted hoodwinker, they still stood in line eager to hand over their two-bits for the privilege. I knew at the ten minute mark that if I was to be entertained, it would be superficially. This would be a film that holds little value on paper and would bring out the worst in my cynicism if I let it. It may speak little to my instincts as a critic that I found it easy to set that negativity aside, but it also hardened my resolve to be the moviegoer I want to be. Then again, maybe I'm one of the suckers born every minute.