“Tick,Tick…Boom!” Review
Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield) presents his musical show in “Tick, Tick…Boom!,” a semi-autobiographical story about Larson.
It’s bizarre that, despite all of his work in film, Lin-Manuel Miranda has just now made his directorial debut. Between his work in films like “Moana” and “Encanto” as well as stage shows “In The Heights” “Bring It On: The Musical” and “Hamilton,” he’s simply a genius. When you think of Broadway legends there’s Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, Andrew Lloyd Webber and now Lin-Manuel Miranda. Now, in his first film as a director, Miranda is telling the story of another musical genius, Jonathan Larson, in “Tick, Tick...Boom!” which is now available on Netflix.
Based off of Jonathan Larson’s 1990 semi-autobiographical musical, the film stars Andrew Garfield as Larson as he tries to get his unproduced musical “Superbia” off the ground while contending with his upcoming 30th birthday. As he grows more desperate to get people to see his vision, Larson reflects on the eight years it’s taken to make his musical, whether or not he wants to continue working in music and the AIDS crisis which will go on to influence his masterpiece “Rent.”
While I love “Rent” and think it’s a modern miracle of musical theater, I had never really heard of “Tick, Tick...Boom!” The original musical was actually a solo artist performance with Larson being the main star and working with a small band. The film’s main premise shows Larson performing the musical in 1992 while cutting back to 1990 as he goes through the events of his life that will inspire the performance.
Through Lin-Manuel Miranda’s direction, he takes Larson’s original vision and opens up the world in a way that only film can do. With Miranda at the helm, he showcases a love for Jonathan Larson and his work. Like the films “Ed Wood,” “La La Land” and “Dolemite is My Name,” the film shows a love for the creative process while also acknowledging it’s arduous qualities.
The idea of a “starving artist” has been over-romanticized and “Tick, Tick...Boom!” shows just how hard Larson pushed himself: being broke, living in an apartment without heating and doing whatever it took to get the amount of musicians he needed. However, the film also shows how that sacrifice and vision can also result in spectacular work.
Andrew Garfield’s performance is fantastic and I had no idea how well he could sing. He embodies the genius of Larson and, as someone who works in a creative medium, I strongly identified with his quest to be heard. I also worried for him as his work threatens all other facets of his life including his relationships with his girlfriend Susan (Alexandra Shipp) and best friend Michael (Robin de Jesus).
Director Lin-Manuel Miranda (Left) makes his directorial debut with “Tick, Tick…Boom!” starring Andrew Garfield as legendary musical composer Jonathan Larson.
As the AIDS crisis gets worse, Larson begins to see so much that changes his life including Silence=Death posters, the detestable Senator Jesse Helms using the crisis to continue his attacks on the LGBTQ+ community and Larson’s friends begin contracting the virus and getting sick. This environment inspires Larson to start writing down random thoughts that will become the basis for “Rent.”
Miranda’s direction flawlessly recreates the New York of the early 1990s and he even had replicas of the Moonlight Diner and Larson’s apartment built for the film. This authenticity engulfed me as a viewer and I absolutely adored the way Miranda took Larson’s songs and turned them into incredible musical numbers.
In particular, the song “Sunday,” which shows Larson working at the Moonlight Diner, turns into a celebration of Broadway with a tidal wave of cameos from Broadway legends including Joel Grey, Bernadette Peters, Renne Elise Goldsberry, Howard McGillin, Phillipa Soo and Lin-Manuel Miranda. The entire film feels like a celebration of musical theater and it made me feel so uplifted.
Tragically, the night before “Rent’s” off-Broadway premiere in 1996, Larson died of an aortic aneurysm when he was 35. The film acknowledges his passing and, rather than become somber, “Tick, Tick...Boom!” becomes a celebration of his life and the unbelievable legacy he left on the arts.
For those who love musicals, “Tick, Tick...Boom!” is a fantastic film to stream. The music is wonderful, the story is unbelievably human and what it has to say about being an artist is as realistic as it is inspiring.
