Michael Giorgio

I couldnt get past a bunch of pretty Hollywood actors as blue collar Long Islanders, especially the lousy accents. Lily Rabe was the exception and is a joy as always. Ty Sheridan is great if only he wasnt trying so hard at the accent. Ben Afleck only hooked as the older version of his character. The early version was so grating that he took me out in every scene and I anxiously awaited the next one without him. I wonder if it would have worked better with real ny actors? Geez, there are tons of good ones that neednt be playing at being poor with blue collar ny accents. Its a great story with a mediocre script. George Clooney has done much much better.

Stellar. Im a huge August Wilson fan, saw the original Broadway production, and actually think this one is better. Mostly because Viola Davis slays it. She found every inch of Rainey’s anger, bawdiness, humor. She also looked like her! The screen adaptation, George Wolfs direction and Branford Marsaliss score (not to mention costume detail) transpire to make this golden. Excellent cast. The only slight fault I found, which was rhe strongest part of the Broadway production was Levee. Its really his story. Its also the hardest role in it. Wilson always has rhis type of character in his work. Theyre symbols based in realism. As a result, theyre very difficult to pull off. Its not favorable to criticize Chadwick Boseman right now. But I honestly thought he was missing something he nailed the hubris, swagger, raw hunger for his place as a black man and musician. But Levee is also deeply troubled with fire level rage. Its why he does what he does at the end. Charles Dutton did on stage what Davis does in the movie: note for note perfection. It is a herculean task, and these almost greek mythology scenes are where Boseman just misses the mark. Beyond that, he crushed everything else. I watched it twice in a row. Its about time the world knows what the theater did in the 80s. August wilson is modern Shakespeare.

Well, I've been writing about since Thursday, when I saw the preview so why not here. I saw it again in IMAX last night and that kicked the music into high gear for sure. As a die hard American fan, I knew the story well. Very well. Is the movie perfect or "great"? No. But it's damned good. Rami Malek kills as Freddie. And that's no small feat to impress fans. If you think I"m a fanatic, try those in England and South America. Even the rest of the band are played by skilled actors, most notable is the guy playing Brian May! Looks, talks and SOUNDS like him. Story is choppy, connective tissue is cut, and facts are skewed out of order for narrative sake. This would be the reason why it's not "great." Nevertheless, individual scenes are well written and greatly played - the music scenes are awesome, especially the penultimate Live Aid sequence, you get a decent if respectfully tame glimpse into Freddie's private life - enough that you "get it" without going too far. And it's basically a well done tribute to a phenomenal front man and a brilliantly talented and innovative rock band. The audience clapped at the end when I saw it. You can't not after the huge Live Aid bit. Good work.