tick… tick… BOOM! puts the bright spotlight on the creative struggles, in this case, the life of playwright composer Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield) to produce a theatrical work! The original semi-autobiographical musical was performed by Larson in 1990. It featured a composer named Jon trying to make it in New York City. In 1996, playwright David Auburn turned into a three character play that made it to Off-Broadway in 2001. Larson continued working and eventually wrote the lyrics, music, and book for Rent. It won the Tony Awards for Best Musical, Best Book, Original Score, and featured actor, Wilson Jermaine Heredia. Rent also won the Pulitzer Prize for drama and was made to a film in 2005. Lin-Manual Miranda performed as Jon in 2014. This is Miranda’s first feature film as a director. It is an interesting year for Miranda, his first musical, In the Heights was released on June 10th. The film opened in theaters on November 12th and streamed on Netflix on November 19th.
Miranda's songs are in the upcoming Disney animated film, Encanto, on November 24th. The screenplay adaptation is by Steven Levenson who also has a good year with his 2017 musical, Dear Evan Hansen, released in theaters on September 24th. He also wrote the screenplay of that movie. An supporter of Larson was Stephen Sondheim, he appears in this movie, whose musical, West Side Story (1957) was his professional debut, Miranda helped Sondheim translate the musical to Spanish for a 2009 production of the musical. A 1961 film adapted the musical and also this year we will have the Steven Spielberg directed adaptation to open in theaters on December 10th. We hear clapping as there is video camera footage of a smiling Jonathan Larson (Garfield) walk on stage. Garfield was also in the biographical drama, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, this year. In interviews, Garfield said he trained a year and a half on his vocals, he is captures the songs and sometimes I lose the actor and only see Jonathan Larson. The film shifts to the musical performance to Jonathan's life and weaves in flashbacks.
Jon says he is “a musical theater writer, the last of his species.” He confesses that he has been hearing a sound like ticking. Then, we get Jon bringing in a dinner tray to Susan (Alexandra Shipp) on their anniversary. In 2014, Shipp starred and sang in the TV movie, Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B. A female narrator explains this is before the fame of Rent. We find out narrator is Susan who is part of the narrative. The footage focuses on his sister, Julie, executive producer for the movie. Jon is at the piano and says that it is January 26, 1990. The camera focuses on that date on a calendar which is marked “Susan’s show.” He notes everything he owns including his “dystopian rock musical”, Superbia. It was rejected by everybody and then he gives his end date of turning 30 in a week. He starts into his first song, “30/90”, joined by the band, and singer Roger (Joshua Henry). The actor was in the vocal ensemble for the In the Heights movie. This shifts to the Moondance Diner where we get Jon’s longtime friend Michael (Robin de Jesús) who has brought copies he made of the play. de Jesús is a theatrical actor known for playing Sonny in the production of In the Heights. His character seems to be split into the corporate Benny and roommate Roger in Rent, but Michael is also the voice of reason trying to advise his friend.
Jonathan wants the waitress Carolyn (Michaela Jaé Rodriguez) to the Superbia workshop. She played Angel in a Off Broadway production of Rent in 2011. The other worker in Freddy (Ben Ross) who was in the 2018 tour of Dear Evan Hansen. Michael asks him, “Are you being led by fear or love?” This is an important part of this film and finds itself into Rent. It switches from the stage to Michael’s apartment singing and dancing with his former roommate Michael, a very energetic number. Then, we get a library where Susan is amazed Jonathan gave his notice to the diner. He tells her Rosa, his agent, invited an influential group to the workshop. Jonthan continues the song with the library patrons joining in, this feels like the barrier broken like In the Heights. He dives into a pool, another important image for the movie, and then we get Karessa (Vanessa Hudgens) joining the duo on stage. Hudgens played Maureen Johnson in the television production of Rent: Live (2019). The song finishes and Jon moves the narrative to Friday with an introduction of Michael. He notes that Michael was the lead in every play, he gets rejected at auditions, and then finds an advertising agency job.
At the apartment, Michael reminds Jonathan of the rent notice, and getting a new roommate. Jonathan writes in his notebook which we see on screen, “Fear or Love?” Then, he introduces Susan who we see dancing in a company in white sweats. Jon explains that she was studying biology, turned to modern dance, but needs to join a company. Susan injured her knee and once she recovered, lost her drive. There is perils for creative artists and also the promises from Jonathan's talent. We see Jonathan in the audience and hear the ticking. This goes to the party, later Freddy notes he has a job on an Arctic cruise, Jonathan asks him about his T-cell count. This is another important story thread, the AIDS crisis in the 90’s, in the film. The party slows down and Jonathan bursts into a lively number, “Boho Days” echoing the later “La Vie Boheme” in Rent. At the end of the party, Susan is on the roof when Jonathan joins her, she says that she is looking at a teaching job at a dance school. It is at the Berkshires in western Massachusetts. This is her conflict in trying to see if Jonathan wants her to stay or take the job and move away.
Jonathan is freezing so Susan gives him her coat revealing her green dress. He is so taken by her that they are kissing in the bedroom. She says that she got the job at the Berkshires and it is permanent. Later, Jonathan tells Michael the situation in a car, he suggests Jonathan should have Susan move into the apartment. He also mentions that there is a focus group at his ad company and wants Jonathan to write jingles there. Michael shows Jonathan his luxury apartment at Ivory Towers. The fantasy of living a comfortable life is in the song, Jonathan meets with Ira Weitzman (Jonathan Marc Sherman), who has agreed to put on Superbia for Playwrights Horizons, but needs a song in the second act. Jonathan shifts back to a workshop where they had visiting guests including Stephen Sondheim (Bradley Whitford). The actor is in the drama series, The Handmaid's Tale. Sondheim has praise, but later also brings up the missing song. Larsson’s brilliance is shown in these ordinary moments that features the “Sunday” number that has a host of Broadway legends. Recommended for anyone interested in the struggles of a creative artist. It’s a complicated, dramatic, and fun life for a talented artist, in this case Jonathan Larsson, in New York, the story of tick… tick… Boom!
Five+ Green Dresses out of Five!
#ticktickBOOM, #LinManuelMiranda, #AndrewGarfield, #AlexandraShipp, #RobindeJesus, #VanessaHudgens, #JoshuaHenry, #MichaelaJaeRodriguez, #BradleyWhitford
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