Cyrano

I'm a big fan of both Peter Dinklage and Ben Mendelssohn. Peter Dinklage simply cannot sing. Unfortunately, that fact plays prominently into a musical when the person who cannot sing is the lead. It took away my attention from pretty much anything else on the screen whenever he would sing. Haley Bennett as Roxanne was charming in the role and has a beautiful singing voice. Also, strangely, at a meandering 2 hours, the ending still felt rushed. I watched it on an industry streaming screener. Perhaps on the big screen it plays better.

Peter Dinklage, awesome actor, as for singing....all I could compare it to, is Pierce Brosnan in Mama Mia.

I feel a bit of a fraud seeing this, as I'm not a fan of musicals, and I wasn't aware that this was a musical, until the first number. For me, the music was poor, and actually detracted from the film.

Visually, amazing, the sets and costumes were the best element, it looked phenomenal.

Acting, very good, it is Dinklage who impressed me the most.

If you're expecting something along the lines of Les miserables, I fear you may be a little disappointed.

I'm glad I went to see it, it's not a film I'd want to watch again. 6/10.

Rostand's play is a durable one, even if it does seem implausible.... but in drawing the character of Cyrano de Bergerac, was accurate. De Bergerac was a French officer with an enormous nose, who wrote excellent poetry, dramas, and even a novel about a trip to the moon. I don't know how accurate the story of his duelling ten people in one night was, but no one ever called him a liar on it while he lived.

In casting Peter Dinklage as Cyrano -- without the nose -- director Joe Wright has expanded the character's touchy honor to all the physical slurs people undergo; that's not a bad idea. Dinklage is a problematic choice, given that someone his size would not have been enlisted in the French Army in this period. Once, however, you accept this, his expressive features reveal everything about the character. Haley Bennett as Roxanne is enchanting, and Kelvin Harrison Jr. As Christian is a kindly if slow-witted young fellow: a perfect tenor for Grand Opera.

I'm not fond of the music for the songs, which seem to be largely recitative, and only one song had first-class lyrics: "Where I Fall". Nonetheless, Wright and his cameraman, Seamus McGarvey, understand that the songs in a musical are about what's going on inside the performers' heads, and use a highly mobile camera to obliterate the space. In between those, they find a lot of beautiful scenes to shoot, looking like ancien regime paintings. It's not the best take I've seen; that would be the one with Gérard Depardieu. But this is a very good one too.

Watching Peter Dinklage in this performance is like walking into a decent play and he captivates me to make me stay longer til the end. Seeing his talents and personal struggles is just a treat to watch. So I say if Dinklage gets nominated I hope he wins making history as the first dwarf to win an Oscar. Technically he'll be the second dwarf actor to be nominated for an Oscar since Michael Dunn of Ship of Fools (1965) but let's hope the academy actually chooses well but I won't hold my breath bc the academy has a tendency to miss great performances or choose the wrong winners. Let's hope I say and praise Dinklage for his performance.

Greetings again from the darkness. Filmmaker Joe Wright has proven how adeptly he can re-make a classic love story. You'll likely agree if you've seen his versions of ANNA KARENINA (2012) and/or PRIDE AND PREJUDICE (2005), which are in addition to his best film (also a love story), ATONEMENT (2007). Working from the terrific script Erica Schmidt adapted from Edmond Rostand's 1897 play, Wright delivers a musical version of Cyrano de Bergerac that delivers all of the intended "panache" of the original tragic-romance.

Peter Dinklage (THE STATION AGENT, 2003) stars as Cyrano, a master swordsman and orator who entertains with words that cut like a surgeon's scalpel ... except when he's weaponizing those words for love. Haley Bennett (SWALLOW, 2019) plays Roxanne, the secret object of Cyrano's desire, though she views him as but a close friend and confidant. Instead, her gaze is upon the newly arrived Christian (Kelvin Harrison Jr), a virile and handsome man lacking the charisma and common sense required to court Roxanne. This dilemma lends itself to the melding of Cyrano's word being delivered by the preferable packaging of Christian.

Rather than Cyrano's oversized nose, the film uses Mr. Dinklage's diminutive stature and feelings of unworthiness of Roxanne's affections to create the division, and yet it's the musical aspect that takes a bit of getting used to. Dinklage excels in the film's best sequence, as early on he humiliates a poor stage actor, a rebellious act that ends in a duel ... entertaining for the play's audience as well as us as viewers. It's the connection between Cyrano and Christian that leaves us missing the good stuff. It all happens quickly and efficiently, rather than a slow transition from foes to partners. The film is at its best when Cyrano's loneliness is at the forefront ... Dinklage excels in these scenes. In fact, Wright and the actors (Dinklage and Bennett) nail the ending which packs the punch Rostand intended.

Mr. Dinklage has long been married to the film's screenwriter Erica Schmidt, and Ms. Bennett and director Wright have a daughter together. These ties may have contributed to the effectiveness of the best scenes, though we do wish Ben Mendolsohn (as De Guiche) had a bit more screen time. The three most well-known film versions are CYRANO DE BERGERAC (1950) starring Jose Ferrer, ROXANNE (1987) starring Steve Martin, and CYRANO DE BERGERAC (1990) starring Gerard Depardieu. Wright's latest version is set apart with the musical aspect, and certainly the Dinklage performance ranks amongst the best. Edmond Rostand's play was a fictionalized version of the life of Savinien de Cyrano de Bergerac (1619-1655), but the romance, ego, and self-doubt applies to all eras.