Hugh Jackman is The Greatest Showman on Earth

[Black Narcissus]

This has an 80million+ budget.

 

[samsnee]

Well this bombed.

Has Jackman had a successful movie outside of X-men? I can’t really think of any except maybe Les Miserables

 

[JP]

Bummed cause I really loved it. Saw it again tonight and the audience loved it too.

 

[TheVileOne]

When I saw a trailer for this movie I was surprised. What I had read about PT Barnum historically was less than flattering. This glossy movie showing Barnum as this underdog trying to find the American dream and creating show business. OK. Like what about all the animals he slaughtered and treated terribly?

 

[Mysteryman]

Bummed cause I really loved it. Saw it again tonight and the audience loved it too.

I loved it, too.

 

[Mandon Knight]

I can't understand why this is under-performing, all the ingredients are there for it NOT too.

 

[KRYPTON INC.]

When I saw a trailer for this movie I was surprised. What I had read about PT Barnum historically was less than flattering. This glossy movie showing Barnum as this underdog trying to find the American dream and creating show business. OK. Like what about all the animals he slaughtered and treated terribly?

In today's age they never should have used Barnum as a basis for a movie unless it was a warts and all biopic. This should have been total fiction (which it was anyway) based film with a smattering of influence of Barnum's life but not naming Jackman Barnum.

 

[JP]

In today's age they never should have used Barnum as a basis for a movie unless it was a warts and all biopic. This should have been total fiction (which it was anyway) based film with a smattering of influence of Barnum's life but not naming Jackman Barnum.

Like what DREAMGIRLS is to The Supremes

 

[terry78]

When you do a biopic you're rarely showing the ****** side of the protagonist unless they were explicitly known to be villainous to all. Straight Outta Compton left out a LOT of stuff that Dre and Eazy did that was less than genial.

 

[Mandon Knight]

When you do a biopic you're rarely showing the ****** side of the protagonist unless they were explicitly known to be villainous to all. Straight Outta Compton left out a LOT of stuff that Dre and Eazy did that was less than genial.

Worst Offender of this IMO, was The Iron Lady. Scandalous portrayal of film v reality.

 

[search_4_truth]

For all the people saying this movie is a turd or a flop, think again. You spoke too soon. Check out Rotten Tomatoes now:

Audiences love this movie. Who cares what critics think? This movie got a solid "A" audience score from CinemaScore, which was better than almost all the movies out right now - with the exception of Coco. Greatest Showman is also rated well by people on imdb. There is another polling system similar to CinemaScore (I forgot the name though) and it also had a high rating on that.

This movie has also done better at the box office as the days have gone on due to positive word of mouth. On Christmas, it did quite well and has managed to hang in there. It is now expected to do pretty well at the box office after all, and remain in cinemas a lot longer than the initial predictions. Also keep in mind that Greatest Showman is being shown at fewer cinemas than most of the other movies out right now, so for it to still hang in there is pretty impressive. It is going up against Star Wars, Pitch Perfect, and Jumanji. Star Wars and Jumanji are two of the biggest selling movies of the year. Greatest Showman is certainly not one of Jackman's failures.

I saw this movie twice at the cinema. Once was with my fiance and a friend, and another time was with my cousin, her husband, my fiance's sister, and my mom. EVERYONE I saw this film with absolutely loved it, and at least three of these people usually hate musicals. From what I could tell, everyone at the cinema loved it. The cinema was pretty packed and everyone started clapping when it ended. Kids were excitedly hopping out of the theatre singing the songs. Adults had either tears in their eyes or the cheesiest smiles on their faces.

This movie was a joy. It was a throwback to the Golden Age of Hollywood. The singing, dancing, acting, and cinematography truly was beautiful. There was no political message shoved down my throat. No cursing. No sex. It was wholesome and traditional with a good moral. I'd missed films like this. Hugh Jackman was meant to do musicals. He has so much charisma and talent, and his humanity really shows on screen. He definitely deserves his Golden Globe nomination. I know James Franco is going to win, but I think Jackman deserves to win (and I've seen the other nominated performances). And what a good dancer he is! Michelle Williams, Zendaya, Zac Efron, Keala Settle, and Rebecca Ferguson all did a fantastic job too! And I can't get the songs out of my head.

 

[search_4_truth]

When I saw a trailer for this movie I was surprised. What I had read about PT Barnum historically was less than flattering. This glossy movie showing Barnum as this underdog trying to find the American dream and creating show business. OK. Like what about all the animals he slaughtered and treated terribly?

Hugh Jackman and the director said during interviews that this is not a biopic. The movie never even tried to sell itself as a true story. Even the trailer only says "inspired by" true events. The whole idea was -- how would Barnum have wanted to retell his story if he was alive in 2017? He did rewrite his autobiography multiple times to make himself look better each time, after all.
How would Barnum rewrite his autobiography in 2017? He'd certainly want to make a spectacle out of his life and make himself look like a better person than he was. He'd probably cast someone as good looking as Jackman in the role.

As for the "Barnum was a terrible person" argument, that is simply not true. People are using the standards of 2017 to judge a man from the 1800s. I read his biography once, and while Barnum did some terrible things, he also did a lot of good things. In the end, Barnum was simply a flawed human like everybody else. He regretted how he treated Joyce Heth, he eventually joined the abolitionist movement and spoke out adamantly against slavery, leading to one of his museums getting burned down. He befriended the head of the Society for the Protection Against Cruelty to Animals and even donated much of his estate to this organization through his will. He did genuinely love his wife, Charity - even though he didn't always treat her well. The real bearded lady actually did use her place in his show as a platform to speak out against the public calling them freaks. The real Tom Thumb became good friends and business partners with Barnum. Barnum also has several quotes that ARE in line with the Barnum in this film - celebrating people for who they are and not their skin color or disabilities. I think the revisionist history would actually be to paint him as a villain and abuser. He was not - at least not by the standards of the time in which he lived. And he was loved by the people.

 

[danoyse]

I saw it with my mom yesterday, and we enjoyed it. Yeah, it was kind of bonkers and definitely a *kinder* portrayal of Barnum himself, but the music was good, song & dance Hugh is always neat to watch, and it was fun to spot all of the Broadway show actors in the cast. Hell, Keala Settle nearly walked off with the whole movie.

And yeah...our show was pretty much sold out too. People clapped at the end.

 

[TheVileOne]

Hugh Jackman and the director said during interviews that this is not a biopic. The movie never even tried to sell itself as a true story. Even the trailer only says "inspired by" true events. The whole idea was -- how would Barnum have wanted to retell his story if he was alive in 2017? He did rewrite his autobiography multiple times to make himself look better each time, after all.
How would Barnum rewrite his autobiography in 2017? He'd certainly want to make a spectacle out of his life and make himself look like a better person than he was. He'd probably cast someone as good looking as Jackman in the role.

As for the "Barnum was a terrible person" argument, that is simply not true. People are using the standards of 2017 to judge a man from the 1800s. I read his biography once, and while Barnum did some terrible things, he also did a lot of good things. In the end, Barnum was simply a flawed human like everybody else. He regretted how he treated Joyce Heth, he eventually joined the abolitionist movement and spoke out adamantly against slavery, leading to one of his museums getting burned down. He befriended the head of the Society for the Protection Against Cruelty to Animals and even donated much of his estate to this organization through his will. He did genuinely love his wife, Charity - even though he didn't always treat her well. The real bearded lady actually did use her place in his show as a platform to speak out against the public calling them freaks. The real Tom Thumb became good friends and business partners with Barnum. Barnum also has several quotes that ARE in line with the Barnum in this film - celebrating people for who they are and not their skin color or disabilities. I think the revisionist history would actually be to paint him as a villain and abuser. He was not - at least not by the standards of the time in which he lived. And he was loved by the people.

Which biography? A legitimate one or one that he constantly rewrote himself to make him look better?

 

[sueb1863]

My sister and I might be seeing it this weekend, some of her coworkers recommended it. The soundtrack's #1 on the Amazon best seller list right now. Definitely a much bigger hit with moviegoers than critics!

 

[Mysteryman]

I saw it with my mom yesterday, and we enjoyed it. Yeah, it was kind of bonkers and definitely a *kinder* portrayal of Barnum himself, but the music was good, song & dance Hugh is always neat to watch, and it was fun to spot all of the Broadway show actors in the cast. Hell, Keala Settle nearly walked off with the whole movie.

And yeah...our show was pretty much sold out too. People clapped at the end.

People clapped at the end of my showing, too, this is a real crowd pleaser!

 

[JohnReese]

Well this bombed.

Has Jackman had a successful movie outside of X-men? I can’t really think of any except maybe Les Miserables

Real Steel

 

[search_4_truth]

I'm not sure how they did in cinemas, but Prisoners and The Prestige are well loved Hugh Jackman movies outside of X-Men. People also loved Eddie the Eagle.

I don't think Greatest Showman is a flop. It seems universally praised by audiences and now is predicted to have a much greater turn out in cinemas this weekend than last weekend due to the great word of mouth.

From Forbes: www.forbes.com/sites/scottmendelson...st-showman-score-huge-on-friday/#4124bcff1243

From Deadline: deadline.com/2017/12/last-jedi-jumanji-new-years-weekend-box-office-2018-1202233711/

 

[JP]

+75%

Good. It's what it deserves.

 

[danoyse]

People clapped at the end of my showing, too, this is a real crowd pleaser!

It added 300 screens this weekend, according to one of the box office articles I read. Looks like it’s picking up some crowds, which is nice to hear.

 

[search_4_truth]

Which biography? A legitimate one or one that he constantly rewrote himself to make him look better?

The one I looked at is "P. T. Barnum: America's Greatest Showman", by Philip B. Kunhardt Jr., Philip B. Kunhardt III, and Peter W. Kunhardt. I have also read several detailed articles about Barnum and discussed Barnum with a couple of people who have read different biographies and pointed out new things to me. I have not read Barnum's autobiographies that he rewrote to make himself look better.

Some of the really terrible things Barnum is vilified for are greatly exaggerated. For example, while he did exploit Joyce Heth (and greatly regretted it later), most evidence actually points to him not treating her anywhere near as terrible as some sources who vilify him say. The stories are exaggerated by some to make him look worse than he was.

 

[Rjones1325]

Something weird happened while watching “The Greatest Showman.” Every time I wrote a mark against it for its one-dimensional characters and rather unlikeliness of P.T Barnum, the film personified itself, sat next to me, and said,

“Honey shush. We know you’re a little ***** for musical movies.”

“Yeah but—“

“Shush. You came here to have a good time. And that is what we’re going to do. We’re going to have a good time.”

“I’m trying to have a good time but can you add a little complexity to your story instead of breezing through key points of this man’s life as if they meant nothing. I can’t really dig this film that much unless you do so.”

“Oh yeah. If you can’t dig the movie, then why are your feet tapping and your head bopping?”

“Because I’m a ***** for musicals.”

“Exactly. BYEEEEE!”

Turn off your brain and enjoy the show.

FULL REVIEW HERE: https://rendyreviews.com/movies//the-greatest-showman-review

 

[MydnightPhoenix]

I'm happy to see an audience go against critics and enjoy an underdog film. I have no historical perspective on this but I do wish people would stop judging historical figures by modern mindsets.

 

[Drizzle]

I can't understand why this is under-performing, all the ingredients are there for it NOT too.

Was it, though? It was released in a crowded holiday season against Star Wars and a Jumanji sequel that has been doing better than everyone expected, it's an original musical and those are tough to market, and finally there's no surefire box office star in the cast besides Jackman, but when you think about it, he hasn't had a hit where he hasn't played Wolverine in five years, and Zac Efron hasn't exactly set the box office on fire lately either. Zendaya has a fanbase, but a lot of people over the age of 20 have no idea who she is other than "that nerdy girl from Spider-Man: Homecoming".

That being said, though, this seems to be holding its own otherwise.

 

[search_4_truth]

Wow, how cool is this? The Greatest Showman just set a new box office record!

https://www.forbes.com/sites/scottm...ust-set-a-new-box-office-record/#4b75c7957f7e

It has jumped by 73% this weekend over its $8.8m opening Fri-Sun frame last week! No movie in history has ever seen that huge of an increase at the box office the following weekend! This movie is like Rocky! What an underdog movie! It keeps fighting, and keeps on proving people wrong!