Why did the Critics slam it? I think I know. Relax you will enjoy it.

Rating: 9/10 (28 December 2017)

Okay I am going to cut to the chase. Most people are looking at the critic scores and going Why? It looks fun. The audience seems to like it. Should I go see it? Do you love or moderately like musicals the answer is YES! If you hate musicals NO, seriously just don't. Back to my point, I think the critics got triggered. Early in the film and even the ads show a disdain for a critic's review. The main critic in the film is one of the more well thought out characters. I feel like whether these critics want to admit it or not they got on the defensive early in the show and saw monumental failures when the movie faltered slightly. It is hard for most people to watch a film in which they feel personally attacked and see it for its true value.
Now my review in general, I saw this day after Christmas. I had the soundtrack stuck in my head most of the holiday. I normally am not a big musical person. I only watched La La Land to see why it was nominated for Oscars okay. To be honest, I didn't enjoy it. Being a Sci-Fi big action geek, the only thing The Greatest Showman had going for it was Hugh Jackman, Wolverine singing? Who wouldn't want to see that? (yes, I know his acting/singing/award winning Tony chops) And it had plenty against it, Zac Efron. High School Musical was released when my girls were young so you can imagine how many times I have seen it. However The Greatest Showman's songs had heart. I had to give it a chance. Hugh Jackman's voice was spot on. He had me convinced of every aspect of this character. He WAS Barnum. Zac Efron did an excellent job as well as Zendaya. My heart was won over by Keala Steele. She had so much power and heart. You can see it in her even if she was under utilized. The set design and costumes are Astounding! The screen is filled with what I can only call wonder 99% of the time. The choreography broke rules and kept you guessing.
From the Opening scene you are told this is a Ride! And just in case you thought all would be glitter it quickly shows you there is more here than meets the eye.
Now my Negative. Some of the direction was choppy and camera placement got lost inside the choreography. The story need more time, however, I can see it was edited to keep the audience engaged and momentum up. These obvious editing choices hurt the film overall. If I can tell you edited something out as an audience member you messed up. And that is about all I can say is wrong with it. It is a musical after all.
So if you think of seeing it. Ask yourself how you feel in general about musicals? Do you want a visual extravaganza? Do you always trust professional critics? It isn't truly for everyone, no musical ever is...I would wager this is pretty close! Take the risk!