In The Heights (2021)
SHOULD I SEE IT?
YES
Anyone familiar with the Broadway show is more than ready to see a cinematic version of In the Heights.
Fantastic music, terrific performances, and a visual/musical style all its own, In the Heights feels like a significant moment in movie history.
This is an American story through and through and equally a celebration of culture, community, and family.
NO
There are some folks who simply will not watch or otherwise refuse to engage with musicals - no matter how good, no matter how fun, no matter how entertaining.
Some viewers will find the personal elements of the story incongruent with the stylish flair of the presentation.
The running time, while not at all difficult to sit through, does lend itself to padding out subplots and lesser storylines that threaten to take away from the overall main narrative of the story being told.
OUR REVIEW
Lin-Manuel Miranda is an eternal optimist. Whether taking the complicated life of Alexander Hamilton and reorienting it into a rap/hip-hop, genre-defying, iconic Broadway experience (Hamilton), or in documenting the struggles, passions, and sueñitos of the largely Latino community in and around Washington Heights, Manhattan, the Emmy, Grammy, and Tony Award winning Miranda takes despair, conflict, and tragedy, and leaves us with an authentic, trusting optimism that everything in the end will turn out okay.
That he can do this in such a non-patronizing way - largely staying off-the-nose, if you will - is a testament to his limitless abilities as a writer, composer, and visionary. With the cinematic adaptation of his 2008 musical In the Heights arriving in theaters and via streaming through HBO Max, Miranda’s immense talents are introduced to audiences all over again in this stunning, dazzling, thoughtful, and poignant tapestry of what a community means to a culture and how a culture defines a community.
In the Heights won four Tony Awards and was the project that put Miranda on the proverbial map. Hamilton would arrive eight years later, but the emotional resonance of In the Heights held strong with audiences, as the show criss-crossed the country in touring productions year after year until the pandemic largely halted live performance in March 2020. His heartfelt, semi-autobiographical love letter to the city and community that raised him is accentuated by director Jon M. Chu (Crazy, Rich Asians), who proves a perfect storytelling partner to bring this powerful story to life on the big screen.
The first rhythms are felt when our protagonist, Usnavi (Anthony Ramos, who will be a household name by the time you read this), knocks his fist against the bench he sits on while preparing to tell a group of young children how he returned home to the Dominican Republic. Framed in flashbacks and remembrances, Usnavi is introduced as a young, dedicated bodega owner in the heart of Washington Heights. In a breathtaking opening number, he introduces us to many of the major characters who will carry us through the interwoven stories and experiences Miranda, as lyricist, and playwright/screenwriter Quiara Alegría Hudes eloquently and movingly put before us.
Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz, reprising her Broadway role) is the matriarch of the block, raising nearly everyone in some way or the other. As Usnavi is bonded to her, he is likewise a big brother/father figure to teenage cousin Sonny (Gregory Diaz IV), who also works for him. Sonny cleverly pokes and teases Usnavi about his crush on Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), a fashion designer who dreams of using her talents to springboard out of the Heights. Just returning is Nina (Leslie Grace), back home from Stanford and reunited with former boyfriend Benny (Corey Hawkins). When pressed as to why she’s home, she is evasive with her father Kevin (Jimmy Smits).
The all-star cast fit together perfectly. Chu’s ability to take a story and make it big and epic is only made all the more pronounced in his beautiful, color-blasted, wide-eyed and vivid vision of Miranda’s stage production.
In song after song, Miranda’s balancing of Latin American rhythms is infectious and informative. Each song carries a distinctive voice, flair, and importance to story and character. Nothing feels repetitious, the film seldom drags at 143 minutes, and In the Heights reaches extremely high, with great ambition, gleaming in nearly every sequence.
Potentially lost in this lyrical mixtape of themes and ideas is that Miranda and Hudes have built a sentimental tribute to the communities which raise us and make us who we are. These are places that can trap us in or give us the courage and confidence to step out of our comfort zone and take risks and see the world.
To that extent, In the Heights is an American story through and through. As a nation built by immigrants, the Latino community found in Miranda’s Washington Heights may seem painted with broad brushstrokes. Under Miranda and Hudes’ careful and meticulous design, those broad brushstrokes elicit a beautiful mosaic of inclusion, representation, and a reflection of who we are as a country.
But through the love stories, the musical set pieces, the comedy, the emotional entanglements and dramatic complications we walk and dance through, In the Heights gives us a story about dreams - sueñitos - large and small. The right to pursue them, the right to fight for them, and the perceived opportunities which come from working hard to achieve them.
This is an exceptional film and In the Heights should undoubtedly become a massive success. The film is infinitely rewatchable, the pacing nearly flawless. Masterful editing from Myron Kerstein locks into the syncopated rhythms Chu, Miranda, and Hudes have built together. Alice Brooks’ cinematography is ever curious, playfully capturing lots of little details and swinging, twirling, and vibing with the tempo.
At times, In the Heights feels like a music video, which will possibly take some people out of the heartfelt story being told. Miranda’s optimism saves the day. As dire as circumstances may get for his characters, he seems to welcome these moments where so many other writers would falter. His innate ability to find the good in situations and to sprinkle hope into every idea, scenario and conflict his characters encounter truly sets him apart from his peers.
A comedic cameo from Miranda keeps him on our minds, but Anthony Ramos’ performance steals your heart. The youthful twinkle in his eye, the impassioned power he develops as he finds his voice. The nods and winks he passes over to those he cares about the most. He’s got this.
And it is through Usnavi’s eyes that we see everything open up around us. In the Heights is so much more than just one man’s story, but it is through him we understand the stakes at play. Exhilarating, moving, and unforgettable, it is hard not to imagine that this is a movie we will be talking about for years and years to come.
CAST & CREW
Starring: Anthony Ramos, Leslie Grace, Melissa Barrera, Corey Hawkins, Olga Merediz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Gregory Diaz IV, Jimmy Smits, Stephanie Beatriz, Dascha Polanco, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Marc Anthony, Noah Catala, Christopher Jackson, Mateo Gómez
Director: Jon M. Chu
Written by: Quiara Alegría Hudes
Based on the stage musical “In the Heights,” written by Quiara Alegría Hudes and Lin-Manuel Miranda
Release Date: June 10, 2021
Warner Bros./HBO Max