“Dear Evan Hansen,” the beloved Tony Award-winning Broadway musical sensation is now a film adaptation. To celebrate the opening night, a live stream Q&A with the cast was showing in selective movie theatres.
Ben Platt has reprised his role as Evan Hansen, a high school senior with severe social anxiety, which inhibits his ability to connect with other people and make friends. After the death of one of his classmates, Connor Murphy. He fabricates a lie that inadvertently brings him closer to the classmate’s family, while also allowing him to gain his own sense of purpose.
Before the movie, moviegoers were watching the cast answer a few questions sent from fans through social media. The Q&A only lasted about 30 minutes but the interview had depth in asking some fun easy-going questions, advice about dealing with mental health, and how the actors prepared for emotional scenes. It was fascinating hearing how Platt made the transition from theatre to film in embodying the emotional role.
“It is the biggest challenge in terms of the medium switch for me in theatre. You get the great roller coaster of A to D and you are in this certain cropping directly to moments, ” said Platt. “So for me, the key was a lot about listening to music between takes. I would listen consistently throughout the day in trying to keep me in the same zone and kinda build me back up to the same spot. I found it really helpful so much sometimes in scenes, you know we have this little earpiece that we used in the live singing. I would sometimes have our director play some of those songs that got me to those places in my ear for me so I can be staying in that world.”
Critics praised the broadway musical, but it is a different story when it comes to the film. The film did have a few flaws that will upset fans. The audience will notice that they cut out “Anybody Have a Map?,” “Disappear,” and “Good for you,” but added two new original songs, “The Anonymous Ones” sung by Amandla Stenberg who plays Alana Beck, and “A Little Closer” sung by Colton Ryan who plays Connor Murphy, adds a more in-depth storyline to their characters.
If you heard about the movie then you probably heard the debate about the issues of re-casting Platt as Hansen, despite him being a 27-year-old playing a high schooler while filming. People are saying he is too old for the part and wanted a younger Hansen. Watching the movie, audiences can see the camera panning too close to Platt’s face. Easily seeing the tons of makeup Platt is wearing to make him seem young in hiding his 5 o’clock shadow.
Despite what the critics say, there is only one Evan Hansen and it’s Platt. In 2017, he won a Tony award for Best Actor for the role of Evan Hansen. Platt gave a breathtaking Broadway performance, and the movie is no exception. In the film adaptation, he gives a raw emotional performance that will make the movie-goer look past his age and all the minor mistakes the movie made.
The film brings the story to life in a real-world setting with actors perfectly portraying their roles and letting the audiences get lost in the story. This is a type of movie an individual has to judge for themselves to determine if “Dear Evan Hansen” is truly a miss or a hit.
