In the Heights

As we continue our movie trek into the summer season, the first musical genre film offered is that of "In the Heights". It's one of those films that was supposed to be released last year, however with the pandemic, well...you know. This is based on Lin-Manuel Miranda's concept and his music and lyrics which simply becomes electrified on the silver screen.

This film centers on a variety of characters living in the neighborhood of Washington Heights, on on the northern tip of Manhattan. At the center of the show is Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), a humble bodega owner who looks after the aging Cuban lady next door,  Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz), pines for the gorgeous girl working in the neighboring beauty salon, Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), attempting to be the role model for his young cousin, Sonny (Gregory Diaz IV) and dreams of winning the lottery and escaping to the shores of his native Dominican Republic. Meanwhile, Nina Rosario (Leslie Grace), a childhood friend of Usnavi's, has returned to the neighborhood from her first year at Stanford University with surprising news for her father, Kevin (Jimmy Smits), who has spent his life savings on building a better life for his daughter. Ultimately, Usnavi and the residents of the close-knit neighborhood get a dose of what it means to be home. 

Others to round out the cast are Corey Hawkins as Benny, Daphne Rubin-Vega as Daniela, Marc Anthony as Gapo, Lin-Manuel Miranda as Piraguero, Stephanie Beatriz as Carla, Mateo Gomez as Alejandro, Noah Catala as Graffiti Pete, Dascha Polanco as Cuca, Olivia Perez as Iris and Patrick Page as Pike Phillips. 

This was electrifyingly directed by Jon M. Chu ("Step Up 2: The Streets" '08, "The LXD: The Uprising Begins" '10, "Step Up 3D" '10, "The LXD: The Secrets of the Ra" '11, "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never" (documentary) '11, "The LXD: Rise of the Drifts" '11, "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" '13, "Justin Bieber's Believe" (documentary) '13, "We the Economy: 20 Short Films You Can't Afford to Miss" (documentary) '14, "Jem and the Holograms" '15, "Now You See Me 2" '16, "Crazy Rich Asians" '18) plus TV, shorts and video shorts. One aspect I can respect about this filmmaker is the fact he can't be pigeon-holed into basically one genre--he's been involved with many of them. While this would be quite the feat for another director, Chu pulls it off in spades! His "Crazy Rich Asians" was well executed with him behind the camera. Even though he was able to obtain a very talented 2nd Unit Director (Mark Russell), at the end of the day, it all fell on Chu's shoulders. The way he combined the choreography with the editing process was incredibly slick and actually enhanced the final cut of this film. Considering it was her first feature film, this was well delineated by writer Quiara Alegria Hudes, which was based on the book and musical play by Hudes, and was also based on the concept and musical play by Miranda. The way this was written made me think of "Les Miserables" and the feeling it had falling somewhere between that film and a standard musical. This certainly had more music than a typical musical, whereas "Les Miserables" was 100% music. And like "Les Miserables", this told its story just as much within the music as it did using dialogue. The musical sequences were well choreographed by Christopher Scott and coupled with Miranda's music and lyrics, this film sang (pun intended). 

I'll tell you, this film was almost a two and a half hour movie and it felt like it was only two hours. It keeps one moving as the singing and dancing unfold--I thoroughly enjoyed this film, but since it comes from Miranda of "Hamilton" and "Moana" fame, it should be no surprise. It also comes in an IMAX format which I'm sure would've showcased this nicely. Grab the popcorn and enjoy this one!

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                             Rated: PG-13                                             143mins.