On Friday, Ryan Murphy's film adaptation of Broadway Musical The Prom landed on Netflix to a very divided reception. While there are many who loved the bright and colourful film, others were less than pleased with some of the changes which had been made from the stage musical, and the divisive casting of some of the actors.
The musical centres on Emma Nolan (Jo Ellen Pellman), who causes controversy in her small, rural Indiana town because she wants to go to her high school prom with her girlfriend. Not wanting this to happen, her school's Parent Teacher Association cancels the prom. After seeing the controversy surrounding the PTA's decision unfold on social media, a group of Broadway stars, fresh from recent career failures, see Emma's plight as a lucrative PR opportunity and decide to travel to Indiana to campaign for the prom to be reinstated.
The film is bright and fun and the musical numbers are extremely entertaining with catchy lyrics and impressive dance sequences. The overall theme of the film is one of acceptance, and like it or loathe it I'm sure you will find yourself cheering joyously at the conclusion. There are a number of downfalls however, the most glaring being the focus placed on the adult characters.
Looking at this poster for the film, you wouldn't even know that at the focus of the musical is supposed to be on two young women who long to be accepted and able to express their love for one another in their small conservative town. At times, I found myself tuning out of the narrative because I just wasn't as invested in the plot lines of the adult characters than I was of the teens. Broadway stars Dee Dee (Meryl Streep), Barry (James Corden), Trent (Andrew Rannells) and Angie (Nicole Kidman) are hard to root for seeing as the problems pale in comparison to the main issue of the film, and little to no time is spent examining why Mrs. Green (Kerry Washington) is so determined not to let Emma go to prom so she ultimately fades to the background.
Much of the conversation which has emerged surrounding the film is concerned with how it differs from the original Broadway show, a dialogue that seems to accompany the vast majority of musical adaptations. The first concerns casting. Many question why musical adaptations constantly feel the need to stunt cast, i.e. cast well known and aclaimed headline grabbing movie stars like Meryl Streep, when these actors would hardly ever be seen on a Broadway stage, and that often, as is the case here, members of the original broadway cast are available to reprise their roles. Of course having the likes of Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman in your cast makes financing the movie easier and can draw in audiences, but of the same vein casting the orignal broadway cast would appeal to existing fans and give young performers a chance to shine on screen. What doesn't help The Prom's case is that Caitlin Kinnunen, the Tony nominated actress who played Emma on Broadway auditioned to reprise her role in the film, only to be replaced by Pellman, something which angered fans of the musical.
The second issue which plagues musical adaptations is the music. Often songs will be cut, shortened or rearranged in film adaptations much to the disappointment of fans. However its hard to fit everything contained in a two and a half hour show into a two hour film, given that film allows for greater set pieces, and the stories of more characters to be expanded.
With all things considered there seems to be no perfect way to adapt a musical for the big screen. If you make changes to the plot, music or cast you run the risk of angering and alienating fans. Another option would be to do as was done with Hamilton, and record the stage show in full. With the success of the Hamilton film it is possible that more shows will try to continue this trend as opposed to going down the traditional film adaptation route, however if this is the case it may be difficult for smaller musicals to do this and keep running on broadway. The majority of broadway shows cost around $100 a ticket, so if you made a full recording of the show readily available it's likely that less people will want to see it live.
As a whole, The Prom is a certainly an enjoyable feel good film, and should you feel in the need for some cheering up this winter, it is worth a watch!
I really enjoyed this film, the music and general story line made we want to see the stage show when normality returns - however, the rest of the family tuned out half way through saying the storyline was too exhausting.