Netflix's THE PROM Reviews & Reactions- Page 10

[NOWaWarning]

I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, having skipped it on Broadway (it seemed too cheesy for my taste and I didn’t really like the numbers they did on TV). I didn’t love every performance or stylistic choice, but I can let those things slide since the film was overall pretty funny and sweet and well-sung. However, what was with that direction? I am dizzy from the nonstop moving/spinning camera and the constant cutting. I had to look away a few times and just listen because I was getting a headache. And I’ve enjoyed a lot of Murphy’s past directorial efforts.

[A Director]

The music and lyrics are bland and forgettable. The show might have worked if the four people from New York City weren't in the show. I don't understand why it got to Broadway in the first place. It's one step above a Summer Stock/Dinner Theatre musical.  Yes, The Prom was on Broadway, but 309 performances doesn't mean it was a hit.

[qolbinau]

"had already concluded that the role played by Kidman was non-essential before seeing the movie, but I thought she was delightful. I do think a real dancer would have done Zazz better, but it is a pretty nothing role and no-one could have made more of it that she did."

What I liked about the role/her performance is that she is a chorus girl who is never noticed, and accordingly did fade into the background and was overshadowed a lot by the others - but still had her moments and perhaps was the most sincere of all of the Broadway actors, and appeared to be the only one that actually had a genuine connection with Emma. It's an understated part but important.

-----

I know this is perhaps the least important thing to complain about, but is anyone else bothered by the lyric 'That in ten years or so, we'll do Eleanor 2'? It's one of the few Broadway satire moments that I don't actually feels real at all and is catering to a mass audience who doesn't know anything about Broadway. Yes, Broadway has had a couple of sequels historically but unlike film it is definitely not part of our culture and not something that actors typically seem to be eagerly wanting in their careers. 

[A Director]

qolbinau said: 

I know this is perhaps the least important thing to complain about, but is anyone else bothered by the lyric 'That in ten years or so, we'll do Eleanor 2'? It's one of the few Broadway satire moments that I don't actually feels real at all and is catering to a mass audience who doesn't know anything about Broadway. Yes, Broadway has had a couple of sequels historically but unlike film it is definitely not part of our culture and not something that actors typically seem to be eagerly wanting in their careers."

At one time, musicals appealed to a mass audience.  The Eleanor 2 joke is lazy writing.  Dee Dee's lyric "When I'm in The Miracle Worker, I'll play blind, deaf and dumb," is in poor taste and offensive."  Again, lazy writing.

 

[Chowd95]

Wow, after only two days The Prom is #2 in the Netflix top ten.

[dramamama611]

(Dont know if anyone mentioned this, didn't see it if it was...) But does no one else find the age difference between Streep and Key to be ridiculous?

[uncageg]

dramamama611 said: "(Dont know if anyone mentioned this, didn't see it if it was...) But does no one else find the age difference between Streep and Key to be ridiculous?"

Nope. I noticed it but it really didn't seem ridiculous. Happens everyday.

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Interesting it didn’t even occur to me that there was an age difference.

[TNick926]

It's funny, I too had no qualms about difference in age between Meryl and Keegan-Michael - relationships can blossom between people with large age differences - I personally know quite a few such couples.  But the age difference that bothered ME was between Meryl and James Corden - they talk and act as if they're contemporaries in the theater, but he of course is decades younger.  She looks sensational by the way, very much a glamorous Broadway star in the vein of Chita or Christine etc.  Nathan Lane in the part would have made more sense in many ways, BUT James really got me in the hotel scene with Meryl where they both really bare their hearts - in fact the emotional honesty in those scenes was powerfully moving to me and tears did indeed flow...  I'm so glad I watched it and am almost through it again - I feel it works SO MUCH BETTER as a movie than it did on stage, and I'm just so glad Ryan Murphy made it happen!

[iluvtheatertrash]

Ah, the old misogynistic “she’s too old for him” song and dance.

[MichelleCraig]

I enjoyed this. I almost turned it off after about 40 minutes, but I'm glad I stuck with it as it totally sucked me in and I totally went with it; like a guilty pleasure.

The actual age difference between Streep and Key is about 21 or 22 years. Streep definitely appeared older and I thought about it for a few seconds while watching last night. Still, this morning it reminds me of a line Streisand shot back at a journalist a number of years ago (2012) when asked if she thought she might be too old to play Rose in GYPSY. Her answer: "How old do I look to you?"

[edmundog2]

The age thing is a little weird. One of the aspects of the character is that he took a bus to NYC and saw her in one of her first shows. Their romance is like... Someone who’s always been in her life but never has, if that makes sense? There’s a better way of saying it, I’m sure. Making him 20 years younger puts a different tone on it, to me. It’s not a missed opportunity from another life, it’s just her boinking a fan.

Also, Ryan, you can do things with the camera OTHER THAN SPINNING IT AROUND EVERYONE.

[Zamedy154]

My brief thoughts (I saw the show on Broadway and fell in love with it. Beth Leavel is a QUEEN!):

-I loved it. It's a feel good, never-takes-itself-too-seriously two hours of joy and fun with a timely message. And the timing of its release... after a disgustingly divisive four years in this country, with hope finally around the corner in both a vaccine and new administration.. is perfection.

-Meryl is one of the finest actors on the planet today. Period. I wouldn't classify myself as a "huge Streep fan," but there is no denying the pure talent she brings to every role. And this was no different. Think of the vast library of iconic roles she has created... yet you lose yourself in the character she is playing before your eyes. Never did I lapse into.. 'oh that's Donna from Mamma Mia' or 'it's Miranda Priestly.' She sucks you in from the very start. Every single move she makes... every eye movement, every gesture with her finger.. is totally in character. Did anyone catch the part at the very end during the finale when it she appears to say to one boy about his date "Oh he's cute?" It was hard to hear but it was so adorable.

-I LOVED the addition of the Tracey Ullman character. It was one of the parts where I truly teared up. Ullman is an INCREDIBLE actress as well. Almost unrecognizable. It was my favorite pleasant surprise in the movie vs. the stage version.

-I was reminded how much I love Rannell's voice. Boy can he sing beautifully.

-Corden didn't bother me one bit. Yes.. I wondered at times what Lane would have done with the role. But all the negative buzz about Corden in the role isn't fair.

-Another part the movie conveyed to much stronger effect than the stage version could -- the end where 'kids from all over the state' come to the inclusive prom. Obviously the Broadway version could only 'recycle' the same cast members you had seen for the previous 2 hours. In the movie, seeing gay couples, straight couples, transgender people arriving -- it was very, very powerful to me. Definitely got teary-eyed there. 

-Really my only 'complaint' (as others have also said) is the lighting. It was just too damn dark at times.. especially at the end. It's one of the areas where I wish they would have taken a page from Hairspray.

Unlock your unruly heart and enjoy.

 

[Kad]

dramamama611 said: "(Dont know if anyone mentioned this, didn't see it if it was...) But does no one else find the age difference between Streep and Key to be ridiculous?"

It did bother me because it doesn't quite line up with the details and implications of what we're told. I always got the sense that Swallow the Moon was an early big hit for Dee Dee (if not her first), and it was decades ago (the orchestration of "The Lady's Improving" for Broadway clearly evokes the 70s or early 80s). But the flashbacks we're treated to in the film make it seem like it happened relatively recently, with both Streep and Key looking very close to how they appear in the present day. But that undercuts Key's character being a lifelong fan of her and the performance. They made some adjustments here and there, but left the gist of everything as it was. What was once a fairly clear timeline got snarled.

It has nothing to do with an age difference in romance, which is a non-issue, but rather continuity of what we're presented.

[BWAY Baby2]

For me, it was like a cartoon- fantasy- feel good extravaganza- who cares who is older than who- this is not a serious movie - so why analyze it like it is Chekhov- it is an enjoyable romp- with great stars who make the most of the material- it is an almost 2 hour feel-good diversion- and it is truly diverting- I liked it a lot- would not necessarily recommend it- as I save that for movies that really move me or make me think- but I enjoyed it a lot. Now on to Uncle Frank at Amazon- about a gay man coming out to his family in 1973- from what I have been told- and that may be a deeper look at important issues- but there is room for anything of quality in the marketplace- and though this is not brilliant musical theater- it certainly is worth watching.

[Bettyboy72]

I’m not going to overanalyze it. I enjoyed it immensely. Would I ever buy a cast recording? No. Would I watch the film again. Probably. I found it sweet and innocuous. A perfect diversion with a good message. I hope kids watch it and it teaches them acceptance.

We’ve been watching old haggard actors be paired up with young actresses on screen for decades. I didn’t bat an eye last at Meryl and Keegan. They were adorable. Kidman was adorable. None of the resolutions were plausible but this was like a fairy tale. The Tracey Ullman bit seemed way out of left field and way too tidy but I still teared up.

[E.Davis]

I thought that Streep and Key had amazing chemistry, and it's such a stupid line but "apples and bees" made me chuckle harder than it should've.

[CT2NYC]

Here's a site that turns your name, or anything else that you want, into the title graphic:

The Prom | Your Name in Lights (zazzgenerator.com)

[jonartdesigns]

I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this adaptation. One thing that bugged both me, and my girlfriend was the lack of the kitty onesie in Zazz. I find the number to be so much funnier with Emma trying to do fosse in the least sexy outfit possible, as opposed to a crop top.

[TNick926]

edmundog2 said:

Also, Ryan, you can do things with the camera OTHER THAN SPINNING IT AROUND EVERYONE."

This DID need to be said ^^^^^, much I enjoyed the movie! :)

 

[Bettyboy72]

TNick926 said: "edmundog2 said:

Also, Ryan, you can do things with the camera OTHER THAN SPINNING IT AROUND EVERYONE."

This DID need to be said ^^^^^, much I enjoyed the movie! :)

YES! and I’m sooooo exhausted by the quick cut choreography. I feel like it started with Moulin Rouge. I believe it is to hide the flaws of the non-dancing stars, but it robs the ensemble of their moment in the sun. Here you have a movie with a also-ran chorus girl and yet you rob the ensemble of any ability for their family and friends to see them. I was thwarted from making out any of my Broadway babies  

 

[dramamama611]

iluvtheatertrash said: "Ah, the old misogynistic “she’s too old for him” song and dance."

 

 

I said NOTHING mysogynistic - I didn't mention ANYTHING other that there is a sizeable age difference.  I'd have noticed it regardless of who was older or younger.  TWENTY years is a full generation, and that's a lot...imo.

 

[SmoothLover]

https://www.heyuguys.com/the-prom-review/     This reviewer agreed with me too.

[BentleyB]

jonartdesigns said: "I was genuinely surprised by how much I enjoyed this adaptation. One thing that bugged both me, and my girlfriend was the lack of the kitty onesie in Zazz. I find the number to be so much funnier with Emma trying to do fosse in the least sexy outfit possible, as opposed to a crop top."

Emma only wore the kitty onesie in the closing performance of the show.  It was done as a joke because she would put it on at intermission and on 2 show days so she wouldn't get anything on her costume.  So either you were at closing show or saw a bootleg that running around of it.  She never wore it other than that one time. 

[broadwaybabywannabe2]

i thought i really was not going to like Ryan Murphy's THE PROM...BUT I WAS WRONG...it was a perfectly sweet and charming movie of the Broadway show...and i was surprised how emotional i got while watch this tale of high school horrors...BTW i thought ALL the performances were enjoyable, with those ranging from over the top...(Streep, Corden), to the more sublime Keegan-michael Key, and Kidman, and Rannells...who by the way played a straight character and i do not hear anyone questioning that move, nor should they...while i liked all the "younger" high school performers...they were all too old to really be believable high school students, but heck that's Hollywood...and maybe Ryan Murphy...

P.S. wouldn't Nicole make a GREAT Sally if FOLLIES ever got made into a movie!!