Landing in UK and US cinemas this Friday is the romantic musical drama, Cyrano. The movie – from director Joe Wright – stars Peter Dinklage, Haley Bennett, Kelvin Harrison Jr. and Ben Mendelsohn, and tells the story of man who is deeply in love with a woman, he believes he can never be with.
In the movie, Cyrano de Bergerac is a talented writer and poet who is in love with his friend Roxanne. However, Cyrano is short in stature and believes himself to be an unconventional suitor.
But while Cyrano waits in the wings hoping that one day Roxanne will fall in love with him, Roxanne catches sight of a young man named Christian. Speaking to Cyrano about this new man, Roxanne reveals her feelings for him, leaving her friend heartbroken in the process.
Upon discovery that Christian also harbours a fondness for Roxanne, Cyrano decides not to stand in the way and instead chooses to help the two get together. Using his skills as a poet, Cyrano pens a series of love letters to Roxanne, which she believes are from Christian.
Captivated by each letter, Roxanne falls deeper in love, but this puts Christian in a precarious situation, whereby he can only woo her with Cyrano’s help. And to make matters worse, another suitor lurks in the background, complicating matters even further.
If the above plot summary sounds very familiar, it should do – there’s every chance you have seen a version of this story played out before. The reason for this is because Cyrano is based on Edmond Rostand’s classic play, Cyrano de Bergerac – a timeless tale of love which has been adapted for the cinema and television countless times before.
Some of the most famous movie versions of this story have included a 1987 Steve Martin comedy called Roxanne, as well as a 1990 French adaptation starring Gérard Depardieu. However, this latest version is based on the 2018 stage musical of the same name by Erica Schmidt.
Schmidt wrote the screenplay for this movie, so Cyrano is essentially that musical but on a much bigger budget. It includes various songs taken from the stage show, a fair amount of choreography, and a household name in lead actor Peter Dinklage.
I should also say that it is a good movie. Cyrano is a well-crafted piece of film, expertly directed, and pretty much a delight to watch. If you are familiar with the Cyrano de Bergerac story, but have never sat down to watch one of the previous adaptations, then check this one out. Cyrano is a fine film – not perfect, but fine nonetheless.
The driving force behind Cyrano is actor Peter Dinklage, who is superb in the title role. He takes on the part of the supremely talented Cyrano with such conviction that this part feels as if it was written specifically for him – he certainly owns it, anyway.
When the film calls for heart, he has it in bucketloads, when it requires pathos, he can turn it on in an instant. There are moments in which he is required to deliver action, and he can switch to this too.
At times it feels as if he is drawing from his own life experiences, and injecting them onto the screen. There is a rawness and believability here and it doesn’t go unnoticed.
Backing up Dinklage is Haley Bennett as Roxanne and Kelvin Harrison Jr. as Christian, who are also well cast for this movie. Both actors bring a certain likeability to their roles and become key figures in the central love triangle.
But as much as this film packs a punch when it comes to acting, it also performs very well in the soundtrack department. As this is a musical, the film is able to convey a great deal of the movie’s passion and emotion through the use of songs, resulting in some beautiful tunes which add so much to the story.
Not every song is gold, but most of them hit their mark. The best of the bunch is the oh-so dreamy ‘Someone To Say’, which is a song guaranteed to stay with you long after the movie has finished.
Haley Bennett gets to sing on this track and her voice is wonderful. She is the movie’s strongest singer and any time she is given the opportunity to release a few notes, the screen lights up.
The same can’t be said for Dinklage, who doesn’t have the same vocal range. If the film has a fault, it is largely down to Dinklage’s crooning, which is bumpy at best.
His acting in this movie is fantastic, but his singing, not so much. He manages to get through some of the songs fine, but others are a bit of a struggle.
If I’m going to be picky about this movie (and that’s kind of my job), another sticking point lies in the lacklustre roles for anyone outside of the central trio. All of the main cast are excellent, but the supporting players are given nothing much to do.
Ben Mendelsohn in particular gets shafted with a one-note villain in the shape of paper-thin bad guy, De Guiche. His role simply seems to involve him looming over Roxanne like a long shadow and occasionally threatening her – and that’s about it.
But I don’t expect anyone going to watch this movie will care one jot about weak background characters, because the story surrounding the central trio is really what this film is all about. For all its musical flourishes and choreography, the film never loses sight of the love triangle that exists between Cyrano, Roxanne, and Christian, and this is what comes across so strongly in this adaptation.
For me, Cyrano is an enjoyable and often heart-breaking movie, which knows how to lean into its strengths when needed. It’s not perfect, and some may not take to it in quite the way that I did, but I believe it captures the spirit of the original story while continuing to make it accessible for a modern audience.
So long as you can overlook some of the bum notes here and there, there is much to like in this movie. It certainly offers some great visuals and the end result is a moving experience.
Read more:
It's A Stampede! 
Leave a Reply