I am a fan of movie musical, but usually ones that are light and funny. I don't care much for the more dramatic ones. Recently this musical was due to come to theatres in Sydney but a lack of interest it never got here. This did not fill me with great enthusiasm for this musical. But then again the cast looked awesome. One of the things that a great musical needs to make it an awesome musical is the plot. This film lacks a decent plot. It seems to be all over the place with a cliched main plot of two young people trying to become huge stars. I feel the story would have been better if it focused more on the Stacee Jaxx character. He is obviously the best thing in the film and it would have been better to see more of him. If they had of made the film about Stacee and possibly included some material on his band members. Stacee is supposed to be the lead singer of a band, but I never got that impression from the story as he was always the focus of attention. Despite that small problem the film is still a great deal of fun. The characters are excellent and really well drawn. They might be caricatures but they still bring great delight with their behaviour. Adam also knows how to stage a musical number and the songs in this film are brilliant.
Adam has also managed to get a brilliant ensemble cast. Diego Boneta and Julianne Hough make a very cute couple but as mentioned above I would have preferred their story to not be as strong. Catherine Zeta-Jones is excellent as the up tight bitch. That's despite the fact her character breaks into song. Bryan Cranston as her husband the Mayor is great too. Paul Giamatti plays the usual sleazy character he always plays, but he is so good at it. Alec Baldwin has been doing some great work lately in comedy and proves that once again here. He is ably supported by the equally as wonderful Russell Brand. They make an hilarious comedy team. Their rendition of Can't Fight This Feeling is one of the funniest things I've seen in a film all year. The biggest surprise for me was Tom Cruise. I have not always been a fan of his but lately he seems to be breaking out of the typical roles he plays and do more crazy stuff. I did not see Tom Cruise on screen in this film, I saw Stacee Jaxx. He was simply stunning to watch. Not only was he funny but he could bring poignancy to his character as well. Then to top it all off he can sing and perform like a real rock star.
While the plot might not be the strongest this is still worth checking out for the excellent performances by the actors and the great songs they sing.
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