I was born in the late seventies. As such, I did not grow up with the music of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. I’ve heard many of the tunes and like them just fine. But when Jersey Boys became a huge hit on Broadway, after getting its start here in San Diego at the La Jolla Playhouse, it didn’t register very high for me on a personal level. Somehow, the stage musical has now been adapted into a Clint Eastwood film. That was … unexpected. One doesn’t think of big musical numbers when it comes to Clint, though he did direct Bird so the idea of him helming another musician’s biopic wasn’t so far-fetched.
With that said, one thing audiences need to know going into Jersey Boys is that this is NOT a musical. Yes, there is plenty of singing and the Four Seasons perform a number of their songs … but all within the context of telling the story of these four guys. Aside from the closing credits, you won’t find any hint of a traditional musical. This is a biopic, plain and simple. I’ve never seen the musical so you won’t find me making comparisons in that aspect, but if you thought everyone was going to unnaturally break out in song whenever their emotions got the best of them, you’re in for a shock.
Instead, we get this stilted and multi-perspective look at the group and how they came together. Each member periodically breaks the fourth wall, turning to speak directly to the audience, and gives us their take on what certain events meant and what they may foreshadow. Some may think this is clever. I hated every instance. I don’t need the film to tell me what something means, I need it to show me.
For their part, the actors (all of whom performed on stage in the musical) do a good job. Not being well-known actors, it was relatively easy to accept them as their characters. The musical numbers are all well done and using performers so well acquainted with the material likely helped Eastwood in getting the scenes to work as he wanted them to. Also, the inclusion of Christopher Walken as a mobbed up neighborhood kingpin added much-needed levity to the proceedings.
All that said, I’m simply not in the demographic to be all that interested in Valli or his bandmates. I suppose if the movie didn’t feel so sluggishly paced in the front half my general disinterest could have been mitigated more, but at 161 minutes, any pacing issues are magnified, and it felt like a 3-hour epic … minus the epic bit. I had initially wondered how a movie based on an award-winning hit musical and directed by Clint Eastwood was getting so little buzz. Having seen it, I know why now.
Jersey Boys is a decent movie, but unless you have a real connection to the music or the musicians, it won’t leave any lasting mark. Unless you’re haunted by horrifically bad aging makeup. Then you’ll remember this movie for a while to come … even though you don’t want to. Of course, Eastwood encountered this same problem with J. Edgar. I’m not sure why he didn’t learn from that experience, but all we can do is hope he sticks to actors playing their own age moving forward. Maybe next time he’ll call the Jackass boys. They seem to do little else but prank people and hit each other in the testicular region … but they know how to make young people look like grandparents. And I’m tired of watching Eastwood accept a heavy layer of powder on an actor’s face as film-worthy makeup.
Sorry for the digression but honestly, it was the most interesting topic of conversation I had with friends and fellow critics following the movie. I still think Jersey Boys is okay as a film, but I think it’s quite obvious I’m going to be forgetting about it well before the end of this rev-
GRADE: C-
Jersey Boys is rated R for language throughout.
