Is it just me, or are too many films being made into musicals?

Mrs. Doubtfire the musical
(Image credit: Manuel Harlan)

Have you ever wondered what 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:The Third Man might be like as a musical? Or The Time Traveller’s Wife? Or perhaps even 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:The Curious Case of Benjamin Button? If you live anywhere near London you don’t have to. The same applies for 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Sunset Boulevard, Mrs. Doubtfire, 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Back to the Future, and 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Brokeback Mountain. Musical takes on films are now a staple in the British capital’s theatreland, and clearl♔y e♌veryone wants a piece of the action.

You can see the attraction for a West End producer or a playhouse needing to put bums on seats in the wake of the pandemic. Curiosity, nostalgia, and brand recognition make a potent combination, with lasting affection for the original sure to drive ticket sales, sight unseen. Bring in a creative or two with their own loyal fanbases – Bryan Adams, say, or Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics – and you’ll have a package intriguing ꦑenough to tempt filmgoers and music lovers alike. So much so, indeed, that you’ll likely accrue a healthy advance long before you even have to face the critics’ sharpened quills.

As a former theatre critic myself, it’s been interesting to see the medium I used to write about permeated in recent years by the one I write about now. And if the crossover works – as with the likes of 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:Amélie, 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:The Band’s Visit, and Heathers – it can be the best of both worlds. For all that,♐ I can’t help feeling cinema’s inroads into theatre have cost the latter more than it’s actually gained. Established IP might be savvy ✅business-wise, but it’s also something of a crutch – a buttress against risk that ultimately stifles genuine innovation and inventiveness.

Back in the day, a composer and lyricist duo such as Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice could take a seemingly unpromising notion – the life of an Argentinian dictator’s wife, for example – and mould it into theatrical gold. Who would take a punt today on a newcomer with a concept that outlandish? Films and musicals have been great bedfellows, but the time has surely co💜me for a trial separation. Or is it just me?

Neil Smith is a freelance film critic who has written for severꦯal publications, including Total Film. His bylines can be found at the BBC, Film 4 Independent, Uncut Magazine, SFX, Heat Magazine, Popcorn, ✤and more.