Surprised me. Understandably, it doesn't have any footage of the number (the one spoiler the show keeps under wraps) but plays like a crafted trailer, with backstage shots, etc. What intrigued me is how the number comes across: like an expert cover of Menzel. Levy is a powerful singer, and lands all the money notes perfectly. Yet nothing really feels like her own take except that egregiously interpolated last note.
Maybe I've heard it too many times. I expected something that takes the song up a notch emotionally, not just the final overcooked reach. Maybe it's so locked into "if it ain't broke don't fix it" that nothing can be excavated.
I did remember again that the number is fairly early in the film, memorably, and that the real act one ending -- in story terms -- is the sisters' reunion in the ice palace. That's the emotional suspense beat. I still find the song a forced save for the end of the first act, though I understand the inevitability of the song's move. As noted, "Anastasia" had to reposition the I Want song in the same place. Maybe one reason both shows suffer is the need to treat the songs as audience expected events rather that pieces of a well-told story. Maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe, maybe, maybe; who cares, right? They're both hits. |
