Better Man

It sounds ridiculous, I know. A $110 million-dollar musical extravaganza about ‘the guy who half-wrote that one song you sort of remember because it played on the radio a lot’ that also stars a CGI monkey. The very idea that this film could be anything close to exceptional was an absurd notion to me, and yet…

Better Man chronicles the life of pop superstar and former Take That member Robbie Williams, from his ascent into stardom to his descent into family strife and substance abuse, and he just so happens to be played by a CGI chimp. Director Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman) brings this ridiculous premise to life with kinetic, show-stopping musical sequences and an unflinchingly human take on the ‘rise-and-fall’ biopic formula. It is a must-see, even if the premise seems somewhat off-putting.

Joseph Cox