The Greatest Showman Review

4 Stars

 

“Unless a man enters upon the vocation intended for him by nature, and best suited to his peculiar genius, he cannot succeed.”  Phineas Taylor Barnum, best known today as simply P.T. Barnum, was born in 1810 in Bethel, Connecticut.  In his early 20s, Barnum was a small business owner and founder of a weekly newspaper.  He moved to New York in 1934 where his entertainment career began when he purchased Scudder's American Museum that he renamed after himself and transformed into a "freak show" playing on human curiosity with features like the Feejee mermaid and General Tom Thumb.  Later in life, Barnum returned to Connecticut where he served as Mayor in 1875.  He was an author, publisher, politician, businessman, and philanthropist, but is best remembered for his showmanship.  It is that achievement that has inspired the new musical The Greatest Showman starring Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum.

If you have read any of my previous Previews or Reviews for films based on actual events or people, I have given up on doing too much research beforehand as the movies often take many creative liberties with regards to the timeline of events, the location of events, characters involved, roles they played, and more.  And they have every right to do so as the films make no claims to be historically accurate or documentaries.  The Greatest Showman is based on the life of P.T. Barnum, specifically in regards to his creation of the Barnum & Bailey Circus dubbed The Greatest Show on Earth.

Hugh Jackman tackles the title role of Barnum and he is no stranger to singing on stage or in film.  Jackman grew up a theatre performer in Australia including musicals.  The world was exposed to his singing abilities in 2012 with his role as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables, a performance that earned him the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor.  Jackman received both praise and criticism for his vocal performance.  I was one of the critics asking the question "Were you impressed with the performances in Les Miserables because you wouldn't expect Wolverine and Gladiator to be able to sing like that, or did you really think they gave the performances you would expect if you had paid $500 to watch this on Broadway?"  Jackman has already been nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance in The Greatest Showman and I enjoyed his singing as Barnum more than I liked his Jean Valjean in Les Miserables.

Zac Efron's leading man roles in his career to date have been campy, goofy and sophomoric starring in such movies as Neighbors 1 and 2, Dirty Grandpa, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, and Baywatch.  He is slated to play a completely opposite role as Ted Bundy in a film titled Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile that could really reshape his career and propel him to a much higher platform possibly opening many more "meaty" roles for the young actor.  His performance in The Greatest Showman was definitely a huge step in the right direction to separate him as more than just the goofball in crude comedies.

Last year, when La La Land came out, I said we were long overdue for a new musical and La La Land was hopefully the first of many.  Songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul took home the Oscar for Original Song with their creation of "City of Stars" from La La Land.  They're back and have written the original music for The Greatest Showman and I would be surprised if they didn't get at least one more Oscar nomination this year as it was the music that really stole the show.  The Greatest Showman features a modern pop feel as team Pasek and Paul did not confine themselves to the 1830's when the film is set.  It was a risk, but a risk that paid off.  If they tried to fit the songs to the era of the film, I don't think this movie would have worked at all.

I was excited for The Greatest Showman and had high expectations.  I gave a 4.5 Star Prediction as I anticipated thoroughly enjoying Jackman and Efron's performances along with co-stars Michelle Williams and Zendaya, the music, and the spectacle from director Michael Gracey who literally made his big screen debut.  He's so green, he doesn't even have a completed biography on IMDB.  I had a feeling this would just the beginning for Gracey after a hugely successful Greatest Showman.  I thought this movie was sweet, charming, electric, exciting, fun, and sensitive.  However, I felt it should have been about 20 minutes longer than its 1 hour and 44 minute running time.  Barnum didn't come from anything at all and swept his wife away from a lavish, wealthy lifestyle.  She didn't care about the money.  Their apartment had a leaky roof and no frills at all, but she and their two daughters were happy.  After losing another job, Barnum took a risk and convinced a bank to loan him $10,000 so he could purchase a macabre wax museum figuring that human's morbid curiosity would draw them in.  His daughters pointed out that it wasn't enough.  He needed live spectacles.  He agreed and searched for the outcasts, the freaks.  He found his Tom Thumb, a bearded lady, the World's Fattest Man, the Irish Giant, the acrobat brother and sister, and many more.  And it worked.  People lined up and shows were sold out to see something no one had ever seen before.

Barnum teamed up with the legitimate theatre producer Phillip Carlyle (Efron) to raise their show to the next level.  It takes some convincing but Carlyle gets on board and it isn't long before their entire troop gets an audience with the British Queen.  It's there that I feel the movie started rushing things.  Providing a better life, a bigger home, ballet lessons, fancy clothes soon wasn't enough for Barnum.  He became obsessed with people's opinions about how he obtained his wealth.  In England, they meet famed European opera singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson) and convince her to tour the United States as promoted by Barnum.  At her first performance, Barnum became infatuated with the "legitimate" adulation she received and started hiding his band of freaks to the shadows.  It is Carlyle who first questioned Barnum, though he himself wasn't ready to be fully associated with them.  His inner conflict was growing, however, as he had fallen in love with acrobat Anne Wheeler (Zendaya). 

Barnum quite abruptly abandoned his circus as Carlyle abruptly became an outcast to his family and his upper crust associates as he fully embraced his new family in Barnum's absence.  Almost as quickly as Barnum threw the origins of his success aside, he flipped a 180 and left Lind to finish her American tour without him so he could return to his wife, his children and his circus family.  Local protestors threatened to permanently end their dream, but Carlyle's investments saved the day and the show went on. 

I really only had two big issues with The Greatest Showman.  As described above, the flip-flopping of allegiance of both Barnum and Carlyle could have used a little more time in the film to develop and transition.  The second was the character of Tom Thumb as played by actor Sam Humphrey, an Australian actor with a skeletal disorder that keeps the 22-year-old actor at a height of 4'3" tall.  But that wasn't short enough for the film as they digitally shortened his legs by what appears to be 6 to 8 inches.  The problem is that you can tell he was digitally altered in every full-body shot he is in.  He is also obviously missing from some wider shot scenes, when he should be in them.  During the number "This is me", the cast of freaks are out in the public streets all performing together.  He is there during close-up scenes, but when the camera pulls out, he is noticeably absent.

Other than that, the songs really made this show a spectacle and truly entertaining.  It starts with an anthemic performance by Hugh Jackman of the show's opening song "The Greatest Show" that has a similar feel to Queen's "We Will Rock You".  Efron and Jackman were the perfect pair in their duet in the bar as they sang "The Other Side".  Efron had a very heart-felt, sweet, sincere, beautiful duet with Zendaya as they battled with their feelings for each other as they sang "Rewrite the Stars".  And the Bearded Lady Lettie Lutz (Keala Settle) led the cast of the circus in a triumphant singing of "This is Me".  While the movie sold itself short in it's character and story execution, a shortcoming that really could have been fixed easily with about 20 minutes more, it more than redeemed those downfalls with some amazing original music that should get a couple Oscar nominations and probably one of them taking home the trophy.  So, I predicted 4.5 stars for The Greatest Showman, I'm going to lower it just slightly to 4.0 Stars.  It was definitely worth the money in the theatre, I'd see it again, and I'll be owning this once it comes out.  So, what movie will be on my mind next? We Shall See.

The Greatest Showman Preview

“Unless a man enters upon the vocation intended for him by nature, and best suited to his peculiar genius, he cannot succeed.”  Phineas Taylor Barnum, best known today as simply P.T. Barnum, was born in 1810 in Bethel, Connecticut.  In his early 20s, Barnum was a small business owner and founder of a weekly newspaper.  He moved to New York in 1934 where his entertainment career began when he purchased Scudder's American Museum that he renamed after himself and transformed into a "freak show" playing on human curiosity with features like the Feejee mermaid and General Tom Thumb.  Later in life, Barnum returned to Connecticut where he served as Mayor in 1875.  He was an author, publisher, politician, businessman, and philanthropist, but is best remembered for his showmanship.  It is that achievement that has inspired the new musical The Greatest Showman starring Hugh Jackman as P.T. Barnum.

If you have read any of my previous Previews or Reviews for films based on actual events or people, I have given up on doing too much research beforehand as the movies often take many creative liberties with regards to the timeline of events, the location of events, characters involved, roles they played, and more.  And they have every right to do so as the films make no claims to be historically accurate or documentaries.  The Greatest Showman is based on the life of P.T. Barnum, specifically in regards to his creation of the Barnum & Bailey Circus dubbed The Greatest Show on Earth.

Hugh Jackman tackles the title role of Barnum and he is no stranger to singing on stage or in film.  Jackman grew up a theatre performer in Australia including musicals.  He branched out of Australia when he landed the role of Curley in Oklahoma in London in 1998.  Two years later, he emerged in America in the role of Wolverine in the X-Men comic movies.  While he continued to perform musical theatre on the side, the world was finally exposed to his singing abilities in 2012 with his role as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables, a performance that earned him the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Actor, an award that went to Daniel Day Lewis for his performance in Lincoln.  Jackman received both praise and criticism for his vocal performance.  I was one of the critics asking the question "Were you impressed with the performances in Les Miserables because you wouldn't expect Wolverine and Gladiator to be able to sing like that, or did you really think they gave the performances you would expect if you had paid $500 to watch this on Broadway?"  Jackman has already been nominated for a Golden Globe for his performance in The Greatest Showman and the preview has me excited to see and hear his singing that sounds cleaner than it did in Les Miserables.

Zac Efron burst onto the screen in Disney's High School Musical in 2002, a role that earned him the Teen Choice Award for Breakout Star.  His leading man roles in his career, however, have been campy, goofy and sophomoric starring in such movies as Neighbors 1 and 2, Dirty Grandpa, Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, and Baywatch.  He is slated to play a completely opposite role as Ted Bundy in a film titled Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile that could really reshape his career and propel him to a much higher platform possibly opening many more doors for the young actor.  His performance in The Greatest Showman could really pave the way for America to accept him in that role and to see him as more than just the goofball in crude comedies.

Last year, when La La Land came out, I said we were long overdue for a new musical and La La Land was hopefully the first of many.  Songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul took home the Oscar for Original Song with their creation of "City of Stars" from La La Land.  They're back and have written the original music for The Greatest Showman.  While La La Land's musical numbers had the old school throwback feel you'd expect from the 50's mixed with some 80's hits and a little more modern jazz, The Greatest Showman will feature more of a modern pop feel as team Pasek and Paul were not bound to embody the 1830's when the film is set.  It's a risk, but a risk that looks to payoff judging from the preview.

I'm excited for The Greatest Showman and have high expectations.  I'm giving a 4.5 Star Prediction as I anticipate thoroughly enjoying Jackman and Efron's performances along with co-stars Michelle Williams and Zendaya, the music, and the spectacle from director Michael Gracey who is literally making his big screen debut.  He's so green, he doesn't even have a completed biography on IMDB.  I have a feeling this is just the beginning for Gracey after a hugely successful Greatest Showman.  Am I right?  We Shall See.

Eddie the Eagle Review

4.0 Stars

Eddie the Eagle is the movie that is based on the life and Olympic dreams of a Michael "Eddie" Edwards.  As a young boy, Edwards' dream was to become an Olympian in any sport he can.  The trouble is, he wasn't good at any of them.  He discovers ski jumping and figures he has a chance since Britain hasn't had a ski jump competitor since 1928.  And he's just as bad at jumping as he's been at everything else.  He enlists the training of former competitive ski jumper Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman) who also strongly encourages Eddie (Taron Egerton) to quit while he's still alive.  But the Eagle's determination wins over Peary and the two set out to compete in the Olympics. 

 

Eddie qualifies simply by successfully landing a 70 meter height jump in an international competition.  The Olympic Committee swiftly changes the rules of qualification in an effort to keep Eddie the embarrassment from participating in the games.  So he goes out and meets their demands and they are forced to let him in.  He finishes last in the 70 meter jump, but it's enough to set a British record and Eddie is thrilled.  His celebration, though losing the event, wins over the crowd.  His unorthodox jumping style earns him the nickname Eagle, but he still doesn't have respect.  He decides to compete in the 90 meter height, though he never has jumped from that level before.

 

For those of you who don't quite grasp exactly how tall that is.  90 meters is just over 295 feet which is just shy of 100 yards.  So, imagine standing a football field upright.  That's how high up he is at the beginning of the jump.  A typical jumper reaches speeds of 60 miles per hour by the time they jump and jumps over the distance of a football field.  

 

Eddie the Eagle is being hailed as one of the most inspirational movies of the year.  Delightfully feel-good.  In my preview, I said that movies like this make me nervous for two reasons: first, it's based on a true story, but can I enjoy the movie without constantly analyzing how much is true and how much is embellished or changed to make it a Hollywood movie?  The second reason movies like this make me nervous is because it's a feel-good movie about an underdog.  These can be extremely well done and bring you to tears and make you cheer from your seat.  Or they can be forced and manipulated, and I don't appreciate that.

The preview looked sweet, charming, sincere, genuine, entertaining and inspiring.  But, that's what 30 second previews are supposed to look like.  Eddie the Eagle backed it up with a truly delightful movie.  It is set in the late 1980's and it looks and sounds like it was filmed in the 80's as well.  It has a certain graininess to it and a soundtrack that was taken straight out of some of your favorite 80's movies.  The emotionally charged scenes courtesy of any John Hughes film; the action from movies like Rad or ET; inspirational and training scenes from The Karate Kid, Flashdance or Footloose.  It didn't take itself too seriously, but was seriously entertaining.  

What tugged most at my emotional heart strings was not that everyone was against Eddie, not the mocking, not the overcoming of obstacles, not the crowd cheering for him.  What got me most was his loving and supportive mother.  Maybe it's because my mom is the same way, always supportive and encouraging no matter what I want to do; always the biggest fan.  Eddie's father told him he's no athlete; but his mother always believed in him, or at least in his spirit.  She even gave him an old lunch box to take with him to hold all his Olympic medals.  It served more as a graveyard for his many pairs of broken eyeglasses in his repeated failures, but she always supported him.

I gave Eddie the Eagle a hesitant, but hopeful 4 Stars and I'm standing by that but without any hesitancy.  I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.  It was not manipulative or forceful.  It was perfectly cheesy, sweet, funny and wonderful matched with the most timely nostalgic soundtrack you could imagine, and has a decent chance of making it to my home collection.  So, what movie will be on my mind next?  We shall see.

Eddie the Eagle Preview

In 1988, Michael "Eddie" Edwards became the first Olympic competitor for Britain in the ski jump since 1928.  After an international competition in 1987, he was ranked 55th in the world.  That ranking was enough to qualify him to compete in the Olympics as Britain's only applicant.    At the Olympics, he finished last in his first couple events, but displayed an unwavering spirit that made him endearing to those watching the games.  He became a bit of a celebrity during the games, but his fame was seen as an embarrassment to other ski jumpers.  The media nicknamed him Eddie the Eagle and he was recognized by Frank King, an Olympic Organizer, for his tenacity.  However, after the 1988 games came to a close, a new rule was instated requiring amateurs hoping to compete in an Olympic event must compete in an International Competition and rank high enough to qualify.  This was done in an effort to keep future embarrassments like Eddie from happening again.  Because of the new stipulations, Eddie did not qualify to compete in the 1992 Olympic games.

Eddie the Eagle is the movie that is based on these events.  Knowing what I have read about the actual history, the preview becomes a little confusing.  We see a young Edwards who's greatest dream is to become an Olympian in any sport he can.  The trouble is, he's not good at any of them.  He discovers ski jumping and figures he has a chance since Britain hasn't had a ski jump competitor since 1928.  And he's just as bad at jumping as he's been at everything else.  He enlists the training of Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman) who also strongly encourages Eddie (Taron Egerton) to quit while he's still alive.  But the Eagle's determination wins over Peary and the two set out to compete in the Olympics.  We know Eddie competed in the 1988 Calgary Olympics but did not qualify for the 1992 games.  It is unclear from the preview if the Olympic Committee is trying to prevent him from competing in the 1988 or the 1992 games.  What is clear is that the other jumpers and the committee find him to be an embarrassment to the games and to their sport and want him out.  That only fuels Eddie and Peary even more to keep at it.

Eddie the Eagle is being hailed as one of the most inspirational movies of the year.  Delightfully feel-good.  Movies like this make me nervous for two reasons: first, it's based on a true story, but can I enjoy the movie without constantly analyzing how much is true and how much is embellished or changed to make it a Hollywood movie?  I've seen quite a few of these recently: The Big Short, Steve Jobs, Spotlight, Concussion.  The trick, I've found, is to not do too much research about the actual events beforehand so you can take the movie for what it is, a movie.  It's not a documentary.  The second reason this movie makes me nervous is because it's a feel-good movie about an underdog.  These can be extremely well done and bring you to tears and make you cheer from your seat.  Or they can be forced and manipulated, and I don't appreciate that.

The preview looks sweet, charming, sincere, genuine, entertaining and inspiring.  But, that's what 30 second previews are supposed to look like.  Will the movie be able to back it up?  I hope so.  I'm giving Eddie the Eagle a hesitant, but hopeful 4 Stars.  Worth the price of admission and a good candidate to find a home in my personal collection.  Am I right?  We shall see.

Les Miserables Review

Set in 1815 France, Les Miserables is the story of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) who is released on parole after serving a nineteen year prison sentence.  As time passes, Valjean is determined to do good with his life and eventually becomes a factory owner and serves as mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer. One of his factory workers, Fatine (Anne Hathaway) is discovered to be sending money to her illegitimate daughter, Cosette (Isabelle Allen) and is dismissed by the foreman. Left with no option, Fantine turns to prostitution. During an argument with an abusive customer, Javert (Russell Crowe), the police inspector who has vowed to find and arrest Valjean, arrests Fatine, but Valjean intercedes and takes her to a hospital. Later, Valjean learns that an innocent man mistaken for Valjean is arrested. Valjean nobly reveals their mistake and his true identity to the court. After escaping Javert, Valjean finds Cosette and promises to be like a father to her, fulfilling his promise to Fatine.

It took me a while and a lot of thought before deciding on my final review of this film presentation of the Broadway Musical.  I've decided to give this movie 3.5 stars and I'm sure this will not be popular with everyone, but most everyone I've talked to agrees that the debate over the movie is regarding the performances of Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe.  Ultimately, I was a bit disappointed in both their performances.  But before I get into that, I'd like to point out the many things I thought were absolutely brilliant about this movie.

There are several advantages to a major motion picture with a $61 million budget that a stage production just doesn't have.  The sets, the props, the scenes were absolutely breathtaking.  I was so pleased that there appeared to be very little digital interference.  This was one of the biggest downfalls of the most recently released Star Wars trilogy: everything was digital.  And, as good as the digital creations were, they were still obviously digital and took you out of fully investing yourself into the movie.  There was only one scene that took me out of the movie just a bit and it was how the movie chose to handle the final scene with Javert.  It was almost too graphic for me and I somewhat missed how much of it was left to your imagination with the stage version.  But, it was effective nonetheless.

The costumes and makeup were superb and with several camera close-ups, you really got to see the scars, the tears, the dirt, the desolation they endured.  The camera got right up in the actor's faces allowing you to feel their pain, their angst, their suffering that you just can't get in a large Broadway Theatre.  The camera also allowed us to witness the slight-of-hand pick-pocketing during the "Master of the House" routine which again you miss on stage.

The acting was phenomenal by every member of the cast.  I thought Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter were brilliant.  Newcomer Samantha Barks who played the role of Eponine was magnificent and definitely look for more from her in the near future.  I thought Amanda Seyfried was good as Cosette, but the vibrato in her singing was a little much at times.  Hugh Jackman's acting was Oscar worthy for sure.  But Anne Hathaway stole the show.  Though her role only calls for her to be in the movie in more of a supporting role, she gave the performance of a lifetime both theatrically and vocally with her singing.

 The only criticisms I really have with the movie was with the singing performances of Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe. Definitely more so with Crowe who sounded very David Bowie-esque in his singing.  It was distracting enough that I half expected Muppet-like creatures to join him for a song and dance.  I've wrestled with wondering if one walks away thinking this was so perfect because one wouldn't expect Wolverine and Gladiator to pull off those performances, or if it was so perfect because their singing really was that good.  Some have tried to tell me that the singing may not have been pitch perfect at times because it was recorded live during filming.  That may be true, however, one of the luxuries you have in film over live theatre is that you can call "cut" and run another take if it isn't absolutely perfect.  If you miss a note or a line or a move on stage, you can't take it back.  I understand that to make their $61 million back, they had to get people to see the movie and a good way to do that is with marquee actors like Jackman and Crowe.  Though the singing may have been better with some lesser known actors, it might not be the phenomenon it has become.  But I also wonder this: if I was in New York and just paid $150 a ticket to see this on Broadway and these two actors (not Jackman and Crowe) gave this exact performance, would I feel I got my money's worth.  And honestly, the answer is no.  So even though that is my only criticism of a movie I felt was otherwise amazing, I have to weigh that criticism heavier because this is, after all, a MUSICAL. I highly recommend it and thought it was well worth the price of admission in the movie theatres and I'd very much like to see it again, but Les Miserables will most likely not be finding a place in my home collection.

Les Miserables Preview

Set in 1815 France, Les Miserables is the story of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) who is released on parole after serving a nineteen year prison sentence.  As time passes, Valjean is determined to do good with his life and eventually becomes a factory owner and serves as mayor of Montreuil-sur-Mer. One of his factory workers, Fatine (Anne Hathaway) is discovered to be sending money to her illegitimate daughter, Cosette (Isabelle Allen) and is dismissed by the foreman. Left with no option, Fantine turns to prostitution. During an argument with an abusive customer, Javert (Russell Crowe), the police inspector who has vowed to find and arrest Valjean, arrests Fatine, but Valjean intercedes and takes her to a hospital. Later, Valjean learns that an innocent man mistaken for Valjean is arrested. Valjean nobly reveals their mistake and his true identity to the court. After escaping Javert, Valjean finds Cosette and promises to be like a father to her, fulfilling his promise to Fatine.

Most of the previews feature Fatine (Hathaway) singing the anthemic "I dreamed a dream" number from the musical with gorgeous snapshots of incredible costumes, makeup and scenery flashing across the screen.  This has all the makings of an Oscar-worthy movie: $61 million dollar budget, highly successful musical, all-star cast, and what appear to be epic sets that a live stage production could never even hope to achieve.  The concern is how heavily the focus is on Hathaway's performance.  Now we know that Hugh Jackman can sing.  He is a classically trained theatre professional and began his career in Australia and England performing in musicals like Beauty and the Beast and Oklahoma!  We know that Amanda Seyfried can sing as her chops rang out in the film version of Mamma Mia! Honestly, I think she was the only redeeming quality of the film version of that show, so I'm excited to see her in this role.  The concern for me is Russell Crowe.  Although upon investigation, I found that Crowe, like Jackman, began his career in theatre in Australia and some of that included musical theatre.  But Crowe himself wasn't even convinced he was right for the role.  It was only after a conversation with director Tom Hooper (most notably credited with The King's Speech) that Crowe got on board with the project.  I just hope he can keep up with the rest of the cast who seem like they will be quite at home tackling this epic undertaking.

A $61 million dollar budget and almost no limits of time and space that even the largest theatre stage must contend with.  The advantage is the ability to create scenes, costumes and makeup that completely draw you into the story.  The burden of drawing you in during a live stage performance is so heavy on the actors.  At any time, you can tilt your head slightly in any direction and are reminded that you are in a theatre watching a show.  For some reason, though you are still in a theatre, watching it on a big screen almost helps to create the illusion that it's really happening.  The danger, however, especially in this modern time of technology, is to go too far with digital enhancements.  The most recent trilogy additions of Star Wars are a great example of this.  Though the digital additions to the movie were quite realistic, it was obvious they were digital and constantly kept you from fully investing yourself into the movie.

Finally, the film boasts a new and groundbreaking filming technique of live recorded singing.  Piano accompaniment is played to the actors through an ear piece and they are actually singing on the set and being recorded.  No studio is used to create pitch-perfect flawless performances that would later be used for the actors to lip-sync on camera.  Although this practice is very uncommon and very impressive, it's not the first film to incorporate this technique.

Overall, I'm expecting a brilliant and epic movie that should be moving, inspiring, and emotional resulting in a phenomenon that I cannot wait to add to my home collection.  But, we shall see . . .