Being The Ricardos: The BRWC Review

12th December 2021

Being The Ricardos: The BRWC Review

I’m 19…and from England, it’s fair to say I didn’t know what ‘I Love Lucy’ was growing up, nor did I know the history behind Lucille and Desi, but damn was I wrong to doubt Aaron Sorkin because wow, this was a great snapshot of the lives of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, showcasing them as they face a crisis that could end their careers and another that could end their marriage.

I must admit, I didn’t have to much expectation for Being the Ricardos. I knew nothing about it, had seen no trailers and barely even knew the cast (Clark Gregg was a nice surprise), and yet, for me, it’s one of the years best films. Sorkin’s biopic shadows the couple through one particularly tumultuous week in their lives as a married couple as well as TV superstars, showcasing the past and present throughout which, for someone that knew nothing, allowed me to understand the characters far more. Splicing scenes set during the week with some set before will, of course, be confusing for some, but it allowed me to understand their backstory more and how they came to be the incredibly successful stars they were. It won’t work for everyone but it’s a choice that paid off rather well for me.

However, it’s not the direction, nor the writing (which in an Aaron Sorkin film is amazing of itself) that stood out to me, but the acting within that truly worked wonderfully. Nicole Kidman has the voice, the attitude, and the wearied wit to bring Lucille Ball to life. Her brittle, believable turn grapples with the pressures of being Hollywood’s most bankable comic genius whose eye for physical comedy and ear for lazy comic riffs elevated content to it’s best. She does nothing but impress within, but it’s not just Kidman that shines throughout, while the film is undeniably hers, Javier Bardem does a fantastic job portraying Desi Arnaz, the way he handles business intrigued me throughout and once it concluded, left me eager to find out more about his life.

Nevertheless, Being the Ricardos won’t be for everyone, it’s a story that many will be uninterested in and thus won’t even bother to turn it on. But for me, the way Sorkin splices the producers on-screen personas with their off-screen realities is unique and frankly something I loved and the story as a whole was something that truly took my interest. It’s far from perfect, but as a little snippet of history, it’s one I rather loved.

Check it out when it hits limited theatres on December 10th and Amazon Prime globally on 21st December.

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