Rating: 7.2
Cyrano is okay; its not bad, but I also don’t really have any strong feelings about it either. Joe Wright is usually a hit or miss director for me, and unfortunately I’d have to say this was a bit of a miss, due to the fact I left feeling somewhat empty and it wasn’t too memorable. Don’t get me wrong, its a finely made film, but I think I was expecting something different. It felt like a weaker version of “Atonement” crossed with “Les Mis” and quite honestly I would just rather watch those movies. The film does work in many ways, but also has elements that don’t work at all. It felt too short, it only touched on surface elements of the story and felt like it rushed through the plot, we never really got a chance to settle into the story or feel emotions at all. I also didn’t really connect with any of the songs, and that surprised me because I normally love the music in musicals. There were good elements to them, but they just weren’t very memorable or performed well to be honest. The songs seemed to be largely recitative, which doesn’t really work for me when every song seemed to constantly use that formula. Only one had first-class lyrics; “When I Fall”. I did like the design of many of the musical sequences though, from the cinematography to the set design as well as the dancing. Some stuff in the film felt lazy and half hearted though. However, the true highlight of the movie is the acting! I loved Peter Dinklage in this, he was superb in this! He managed to convey so many emotions and thoughts his character was going through so easily, especially in how he acted with his eyes. He excels in scenes where he needed to convey Cyrano’s loneliness, those were easily the most impactful. I was super impressed with his performance, even his singing was pretty decent! He was so good here I would genuinely watch him in anything now! Haley Bennett and Ben Mendelsohn were also spectacular, the latter of which was almost unrecognizable in his makeup. But ultimately I still really don’t know how I feel about this movie. I liked it, but I’m not sure to what extent. What I do know is that I liked what the trailers were advertising a little more, the movie just felt a little hollow and empty. This is a really weird one for me, it just didn’t really hit me in any ways (good or bad) at all.
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IMDb Rating: 6.3/10
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 85%
RT Audience Score: 85%
Metacritic Score: 66
CinemaScore: n/a
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MGM
Directed by Joe Wright
Written by Erica Schmidt
Based on the play by Edmond Rostand
Cast: Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Ben Mendelsohn
Runtime: 2hr 3min
Rating: PG
Drama, Musical, Romance
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Too self-conscious to woo Roxanne himself, wordsmith Cyrano de Bergerac helps young Christian nab her heart through love letters.
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Fun Fact: Haley Bennett and director Joe Wright are a couple in real-life. This is their first collaboration together. Also, the writer of this adaptation, Erica Schmidt, is Peter Dinklage's wife.
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