‘Boom’ and bust — Lin-Manuel Miranda struggles to show what made Jonathan Larson ‘tick’
Unlike its subject matter, “tick, tick...Boom!” is a bust. Drama is nonexistent here. So are endpoints. Director Lin-Manuel Miranda, who is to musical theater what Steven Spielberg was to summer blockbusters in 1980, suffocates with songs and struggles with pace, giving neither his audience nor his story any room to breathe.
It would truly be something if Netflix commissioned a two-hour project on a would-be musical writer who never went anywhere. Those who never heard of Jonathan Larson or even “Rent” know that by the end of this production — which is sort of a production within a production about a production, with flashbacks within flashbacks — he will somehow have managed to score a hit. Does anyone care how well he and his girlfriend are getting along? (Keep in mind he might need some friction, or some financial challenges, to better inspire his work.) Worse, “tick, tick” isn’t about “Rent,” but Larson’s frustrations with an earlier project, “Superbia,” It’s a little like watching a movie about how Francis Coppola directed “Finian’s Rainbow.”
The far more interesting character is Larson’s friend Michael, who has spurned the arts world in favor of a successful career in advertising and whose life is about to be swept up in the AIDS epidemic of the late 1980s. Is he a sellout? The movie needs a benchmark for Larson, see, here’s what he’s giving up by writing a musical — why it’s OK to spend his other time waiting tables at a diner instead of writing advertising jingles is unclear, but Miranda has to stamp this character as 100% authentic. He wants us to know that the real rewards go to those who follow their heart, not their pocketbook.
Broadway hits are rare air, but “tick, tick” is typical Hollywood. Try even “Field of Dreams,” where a fellow facing a financial crisis is on the verge of being shut down but rallies on a gut feeling. It seems the worst that can happen to Larson is having to leave his fairly spacious apartment and bunking with Michael, whose specific acumen in advertising that’s enough to earn in the high five figures isn’t clear but who’s got a doorman at his building and is sure that Larson could be a big success in the corporate world.
One big problem for “tick, tick” is that prodigies in any field, unlike their work, typically aren’t very interesting, and their lives aren’t movies. “Amadeus” created a vicious rivalry for a flaky Mozart. Oliver Stone’s “The Doors” struggles in vain to paint Jim Morrison as a ’60s pied piper, but the guy who was off-the-charts at belting out a rock song was only highly mediocre, if at times insufferable, in casual conversation.
No one cares much about the drama of “Grease” or even “Fame.” But they care about the songs. Still. That’s the primary underachievement of “tick, tick.” No memorable hits. They are too parochial (“Johnny Can’t Decide”). They click together, but not without regrettable clichés (“movin’ on up, to the East Side”). Miranda seamlessly integrates the songs in the initial stage performance with scenes of the characters performing them in the environments that inspired them, almost MTV-style. This is a success, if the initial stage performance that launches the movie seems like little more than a humdrum concert.
Driving the song lyrics is Jonathan’s dramatic narrative in which two very non-visual obstacles loom — a 30th birthday, and approval from another human being whose significance must already be known by viewers to be appreciated. The latter is cemented in ... a voicemail message. The former? It’s funny, the boundaries human beings invent for themselves.
The radar of various industries is an intriguing subject. In many of the arts, it often starts with achieving union membership or an agent. Like the old saw goes, it’s a Catch-22 — you need an agent to get published or distributed but you have to be published or distributed to get an agent. In football, you pretty much have to succeed on high school and college teams to have any hope of a professional career. Larson’s stature at the beginning of “tick, tick” is above that of, say, Rudy Ruettiger in “Rudy.” Larson is established, barely. Rudy is not; his goal is simply to suit up for his favorite school. “tick, tick” informs us that Larson is the “Rudy” equivalent of a recruit, someone with a place on the team whose work is seen by coaches but who is not yet a starter. He has had works performed publicly, an agent and an ASCAP credential, but he might never go anywhere.
There might be no drama with “tick, tick,” but there is great tragedy. Larson died at 35, of an aortic dissection, before realizing the megasuccess of “Rent.” His death, and the inevitable wondering of what if, does not hover over “tick, tick,” but it invisibly guides the project, the reality that we have limited time for everything, not just the age 30 barrier that Larson fears.
Many movies depict protagonists hoping to hit it big in Hollywood, Nashville, or with a hot book. “tick, tick” suggests that theater dreaming is a little more unique, that it’s a remarkably insular world (essentially, New York City or nowhere) that requires a support network and a lifestyle that might not be for everyone. For many Broadway lovers who will cheer this internal production, the excitement is not over Larson, but the debut of Miranda in the film world. He’s done as well as anyone could do here with a project that is a celebration of Broadway talent but isn’t a movie.
2 stars
(November 2021)
“tick, tick ... Boom!” (2021)
Starring
Andrew Garfield
as Jon ♦
Alexandra Shipp
as Susan ♦
Robin de Jesús
as Michael ♦
Vanessa Hudgens
as Karessa ♦
Joshua Henry
as Roger ♦
Jonathan Marc Sherman
as Ira Weitzman ♦
MJ Rodriguez
as Carolyn ♦
Ben Levi Ross
as Freddy ♦
Judith Light
as Rosa Stevens ♦
Bradley Whitford
as Stephen Sondheim ♦
Laura Benanti
as Judy ♦
Danielle Ferland
as Kim ♦
Micaela Diamond
as Peggy ♦
Utkarsh Ambudkar
as Todd ♦
Gizel Jimenez
as Cristin ♦
Kate Rockwell
as Lauren ♦
Aneesa Folds
as Danya ♦
Joel Perez
as Lincoln ♦
Anna A. Louizos
as Michelle ♦
Robyn Goodman
as Gay ♦
Judy Kuhn
as Nan ♦
Danny Burstein
as Al ♦
Lauren Marcus
as Donna ♦
Richard Kind
as Walter Bloom ♦
Tariq Trotter
as H.A.W.K. Smooth ♦
Janet Dacal
as Sextet Actor #1 ♦
Kenita R. Miller
as Sextet Actor #2 ♦
Eddy Lee
as Sextet Actor #3 ♦
Jared Loftin
as Sextet Actor #4 ♦
Kurt Crowley
as Rehearsal Pianist - Francis ♦
Ryan Vasquez
as Scott ♦
Joanna Adler
as Molly ♦
Sheila Tapia
as Nurse ♦
Ricardo Zayas
as Hospital Man #1 ♦
Travis Patton
as Hospital Man #2 ♦
Christopher Jackson
as Ttb Concert Attendee ♦
Jelani Alladin
as David ♦
Andrew ‘Jelly Donut’ Bancroft
as Building Parking Attendant ♦
Chris Sullivan
as Building Doorman ♦
Luis Antonio Miranda Jr.
as Building Concierge ♦
Kelly Watson
as Homeless Person ♦
Emily Juean Stillings
as Susan Company Dancer #1 ♦
Jennifer Laroche
as Susan Company Dancer #2 ♦
Lauren Yalango-Grant
as Susan Company Dancer #3 ♦
Ayo Janeen Jackson
as Susan Company Dancer #4 ♦
Lucy Struever
as Susan Company Dancer #5 ♦
Stephanie Crousillat
as Susan Company Dancer #6 ♦
Gaby Diaz
as Susan Company Dancer #7 ♦
Ilia Jessica Castro
as Play Game Dancer #1 ♦
Marie Rose Baramoski
as Play Game Dancer #2 ♦
Keisha ‘sparkle’ Hughes
as Play Game Dancer #3 ♦
Lane Napper
as Bookstore Dancer #1 ♦
Kyle Mcintire
as Bookstore Dancer #2 ♦
Sean Ryan
as Bookstore Dancer #3 ♦
Purdie Baumann
as Bookstore Dancer #4 / Lobby Dancer #11 ♦
Paula Ayotte
as Bookstore Dancer #5 ♦
Christopher Grant
as Sunday Busboy Dancer #1 ♦
Austin Goodwin
as Sunday Busboy Dancer #2 ♦
Carlos Gonzalez
as Sunday Cook Dancer ♦
Elizabeth Chestang
as Lobby Dancer #1 ♦
Callan Bergmann
as Lobby Dancer #2 ♦
Kyle Richard Robinson
as Lobby Dancer #3 ♦
Erin N. Moore
as Lobby Dancer #4 ♦
Taeler Cyrus
as Lobby Dancer #5 ♦
Spencer Clark
as Lobby Dancer #6 ♦
Ehizoje Azeke
as Lobby Dancer #7 ♦
Chloe N. Crade
as Lobby Dancer #8 ♦
Maira Barriga Toyama
as Lobby Dancer #9 ♦
Christine Sienicki
as Lobby Dancer #10 ♦
Erin Monteleone
as Lobby Dancer #12 ♦
Sean Mcdaniel
as Ttb Band Member #1 - Drums ♦
Victoria Theodore
as Ttb Band Member #2 - Keyboards ♦
Bryndon Cook
as Ttb Band Member #3 - Guitar ♦
Debbie Tjong
as Ttb Band Member #4 - Electric Guitar ♦
Charles Conforti
as Young Jon ♦
Derrick Delgado
as Young Michael ♦
Mason Versaw
as Teenage Jon ♦
Javiel Sellas
as Teenage Michael ♦
Barbara Ames
as Music Teacher ♦
Noah Lentini
as HS West Side Dancer #1 ♦
Jacob Patrick Wasson
as HS West Side Dancer #2 ♦
Adriel Flete
as HS West Side Dancer #3 ♦
Dwany Guzman
as HS West Side Dancer #4 ♦
Victoria Caban
as HS West Side Dancer #5 ♦
Melody Rose
as HS West Side Dancer #6 ♦
Alexia Belrose
as HS West Side Dancer #7 ♦
James C. Nicola
as Featured Diner #1 ♦
Roger Bart
as Featured Diner #2 ♦
Renée Elise Goldsberry as ‘Sunday’ Legend #3 ♦
Brian Stokes Mitchell as ‘Sunday’ Legend #8 ♦
Bebe Neuwirth as ‘Sunday’ Legend #9 ♦
Phillipa Soo as ‘Sunday’ Legend #15
Directed by: Lin-Manuel Miranda
Written by: Steven Levenson (screenplay)
Written by: Jonathan Larson (based on the musical by)
Producer: Lin-Manuel Miranda
Producer: Julie Oh
Producer: Brian Grazer
Producer: Ron Howard
Co-producer: Deb Dyer
Associate producer: Owen Panettieri
Executive producer: Celia D. Costas
Executive producer: Julie Larson
Executive producer: Steven Levenson
Executive producer: music: Kurt Crowley
Executive producer: music: Alex Lacamoire
Executive producer: music: Bill Sherman
Cinematography: Alice Brooks
Editing: Myron Kerstein, Andrew Weisblum
Casting: Kristian Charbonier, Bernard Telsey
Production design: Alex DiGerlando
Art direction: Deborah Wheatley
Set decoration: Lydia Marks
Costumes: Melissa Toth
Makeup and hair: Mandy Lyons, Satoko Ichinose, Mandy Bisesti, Robert Lugo, Monet Moon, Charlene Spiller, Michael Thomas Zambrano, Kathleen Brown, Lindsay Gelfand, Christina Grant, Michael Clifton
Executive in charge of production: Betsy Megel
Unit production manager: Deb Dyer
Post-production supervisor: Kelley Cribben
Stunts: Scott Burik, David Armstrong, Nitasha Bhambree, Nikki Brower, Blaise Corrigan, Christopher Place, Mariusz Kubicki
