A better enjoyment than made-to-order holiday films. A brassy Netflix musical, a classy inclusion message.
“We have come to show this community that gay people, and gay positive icons such as myself, are made of the same flesh and blood as they are.” Dee Dee Allen (Meryl Streep)
Who would have thought: A Netflix musical about lesbians from Indiana? A musical with rousing numbers that fit the book? A-list actors singing and dancing in a Teen musical? A heavy-handed message that works no matter how many times it is repeated?
Such is The Prom, an adapted Broadway musical and an unlikely uplift in parlous times, that loudly preaches love trumping all, even homophobes and deranged presidents.
Dee Dee, an acclaimed Broadway actress, and her friend, Barry (James Corden), having come off a musical that tanked first night (about Eleanor Roosevelt, no wonder it did), seek a venture that will gain them repute as socially conscious, not narcissistic, as the New York Times claims in its show-breaking review.
Angie (Nicole Kidman) discovers on Twitter a senior at a high school in Indiana who is denied going to a prom with her girlfriend. The troupe has found its cause, which they hope will counter the Times’ claims and does make them better humans by the end.
The film is all about inclusion, the ideal assimilation of lovers of all persuasions into the mainstream, in this case a specific prom. Although songs and dialogue constantly reinforce this idealism, the approach doesn’t mitigate the abundance of good will for gay social outcasts like Emily and Alyssa (Ariana DeBose). I was elated that the tolerance motif never seemed bothersome, so highly pervasive it is.
Just about everyone can enjoy the new year with this spirited production easy on the eyes and ears:
“Love thy neighbor trumps them all!” On Netflix.
The Prom
Director: Ryan Murphy (Glee)
Screenplay: Bob Martin, Chad Beguelin
Cast: Meryl Streep (August: Osage County), James Corden (Trolls)
Run Time: 2h 10m
Rating: PG-13
By John DeSando
John DeSando, a Los Angeles Press Club first-place winner for National Entertainment Journalism, hosts WCBE’s It’s Movie Time and co-hosts Cinema Classics. Contact him at JohnDeSando62@gmail.com
