[Movie Review] Jersey Boys (2014)
Director: Clint Eastwood
Writers: Marshall Brickman (screenplay & musical book), Rick Elice (screenplay & musical book)
Runtime: 134 min
Main Cast:
- Vincent Piazza as Tommy DeVito
- John Lloyd Young as Frankie Valli
- Johnny Cannizzaro as Nick DeVito
- Erich Bergen as Bob Gaudio
- Christopher Walken as Gyp DeCarlo
Review: by Anthony and Lee
The Tony Award winning musical about the Four Seasons that hit Broadway in 2005 has been made into a movie. Anthony was unaware of how many of their songs he was actually knew; whereas, I knew many of their hits and was super excited to see and sing along to Jersey Boys.
Directed by Clint Eastwood, Jersey Boys told the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons’ origins and rise to stardom. Each band member had a differing view point about what made them successful and why they fell to pieces, and each of their opinions were expressed as we followed them through their less than law abiding pasts, their band formation, their family problems, their downfall, and their reunion.
What We Liked:
Of course, the best thing about Jersey Boys was the music. Having never seen the musical, we were both very interested in seeing which of the Four Seasons’ songs would be featured, and I personally had several high hopes. Much to my delight, all of my favorite songs made it into the movie; although, I would have preferred for there not to be talking over “Ragdoll.” The medley at the very end was the highlight of the entire film.
The singing was shockingly good. It may just be my opinion, but I would think that Frankie Valli’s voice would be difficult to imitate well. John Lloyd Young, however, did it with apparent ease, making it obvious why he was chosen for both the play and the movie.
The acting was pretty decent for the most part. We love Christopher Walken, so we were thrilled to see him heavily featured in the movie, and he did a pretty good job. Vincent Piazza did a fabulous job as well. He was very convincing as Tommy DeVito.
It was also very interesting to learn the story behind the band. We, of course, were familiar with the Four Seasons and their music, but we knew nothing else about them. It was fascinating.
What We Didn’t Like:
The movie was well over 2 hours long, and, while it ended on a strong note, it had a rocky, slow start. Actually, the pace of the the movie throughout was pretty slow. If the songs had been interspersed better, there might have been a bit more excitement, but unfortunately the parts between songs were somewhat lacking.
Again, we never saw the musical and were not familiar with the story of the band; therefore, we cannot be sure, but it seemed like there were bits to the story that were missing or rushed. Other than between the band members, there was virtually no relationship development, so the bits about their families definitely fell flat, lacking the emotion that they so desperately needed.
Also, some of the characters were just irritating. We understand that they were based on real people with whose lives and personalities we were unfamiliar, but they were really bad. Tommy DeVito was the worst. We have no idea why Frankie or anybody else would even have tolerated him. The wife wasn’t much better, either.
Summary
Despite our complaints, we really enjoyed Jersey Boys. It was great to see the performances and hear the songs. If you’re into the Four Seasons and haven’t seen the musical, you’ll probably enjoy it as well. The movie definitely made us want to see the musical, though.
Images Courtesy of IMDB
