Hamilton (2020)

For all the popularity of the Broadway musical, I was reluctant to check it out. Anachronistic music and blatant racial/ethnic inaccuracy in a story based on true events seemed like punchlines, yet it was clearly not played primarily for laughs. Weirdness without humor is often off-putting. Then I remembered liking Jesus Christ Superstar and decided I had no excuse.

This is not really an adaptation of the play but a screening of a 2016 production thereof, complete with the sounds of a then-live audience. It covers a period roughly from the first time Alexander Hamilton (Lin-Manuel Miranda, who also wrote and composed it) met Aaron Burr (Leslie Odom, Jr.) to, well, the last time. You should already know what that means. If you badly need an early U.S. history lesson, let's just say for now that he helped George Washington (Christopher Jackson) in the Revolutionary War and became Secretary of the Treasury.

I became all the more nervous when I saw the 160-minute runtime. Could I take that much of a show with almost nonstop singing/rapping? Fortunately, the sound is more varied than I was led to expect. There isn't much rap, and perhaps the most prominent use is in a couple of rap battles -- my favorite kind. I'd say Thomas Jefferson (Daveed Diggs) did better here than in his Epic Rap Battle of History against Frederick Douglass, tho not necessarily victorious.

There's still the matter of constant rhymes, many of them clever. I felt like I had to pay close attention to the rather speedy language at all times. I guess that shouldn't be a mark against the program; I should have been content to miss a few gems. Maybe I'll read a transcript later.

As for the visuals, they are an improvement over just listening to the songs, but I didn't mind looking away now and then. This play is quite abstract: Not only do several famous figures look vanishingly little like their portraits, but some actors play multiple parts and the background is a constant set of brick walls and wooden platforms, including a ring on the stage that sometimes spins people and things around. Only the costumes look remotely authentic. In light of this, having the microphones extra visible in close-ups wasn't so bad.

Speaking of close-ups, you could make the case that the worst thing about this movie is that it takes away compelling reasons to attend the play. Why pay good money and hustle to the theater for inferior viewing angles? Don't get me wrong; I usually enjoy attending plays, but in this case, we can get the main benefits from the comfort of our homes at no extra charge if we have access to Disney+.

When I studied Hamilton in school, I developed mixed feelings about him. The fuller story herein does nothing to make them less mixed, and you should be able to appreciate that, no matter what your politics. He was grand in some ways but ultimately human, not least with regard to women, and I understand why he faced some hostility in his lifetime.

On the subject of hostility, I got curious when the audience cheered at the entrance of King George III (Jonathan Groff), generally regarded by Americans as the bad guy. Turns out he's probably the most amusing character. If I could act in the play, I'd audition for his role.

In the end, the seemingly immiscible elements manage to yield an emotionally powerful experience. I kept caring what would happen, whether or not I knew beforehand. It maintains a fun atmosphere throughout its considerable length and rarely comes anywhere close to irritating me.

Hamilton makes me want to try my hand at something similar. The trouble is, I haven't found a good basis to get me fired up. Yet.