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The broadway musical Hamilton premiered in The Public Theatre in New York City on January 20, 2015. Starring Lin-Manuel Miranda, Daveed Diggs, and Phillipa Soo just to name a few, it depicts the life and career of Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the Caribbean island of Nevis. The first act covers Hamilton’s arrival in New York City in 1776, his work as an aide-de-camp to General George Washington during the American Revolution, and how he met and married Eliza Schuyler. The second act covers Hamilton’s postwar work as the first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and his death in a duel with Aaron Burr.

Hamilton is a musical that I have wanted to see ever since its debut five years ago. Some people may not know that I absolutely adore musicals. Since I live in a city that doesn’t get a lot of Broadway attention, I have never gone to a musical in my life. But one of the ones that I’ve always wanted to see was Hamilton. Although I may not be able to see this story performed live in person anytime soon, I finally got to see this live-taped film on Disney+ and it was definitely worth the wait.

The greatest thing that this film does is inject a sense of enormous energy right from the opening scene and keeps it going right down to the very last minute. It’s a two and a half-hour long movie, and it admittedly does feel quite long and exhausting after a while, but it’s never boring per se. The charisma and energy that every single cast members brings to this production feel so lively and full of life. While watching them sing, dance, and tell a story on the stage, I could almost feel their passion for this story seeping out of them. I had a humongous smile on my face the entire time.

All of the musical numbers are hugely impressive, too, for a number of reasons. For one, they are all incredibly fun to listen to and have catchy rhyming lyrics that will surely stick in your head for a long time afterward. It’s even more incredible that these lyrics were written by lead-star Lin-Manuel Miranda. He manages to tell fascinating stories in each song and also incorporates amazing humor in a lot of them as well. It was a blast to listen to and watch.

There are some instances in which a lot of the lyrics are sung a bit fast, and so it can be quite easy to miss what some of the actors are saying, and as a result, you can miss crucial story beats along the way. But if you have a careful ear, you should have no problem having a great time with this production. Hamilton is one of the most alive and upbeat Broadway musicals I have ever witnessed. It’s ridiculously fun to watch and tells an interesting and captivating story. After watching it, I want to see it in person even more than I already did.

Hamilton is a powerhouse of a Broadway musical thanks to its incredibly catchy, well-written songs and its hugely talented and lively cast.

John Stewart has thrived at sharply skewering political ineptitude during his tenure on The Daily Show, operating as a critical voice while paving the way for other satirical correspondents. Since moving on from the program, Stewart has engaged in a multitude of artistic platforms, including an emerging directorial career launched by 2014’s Rosewater. Now stepping into the political comedy field that he once mastered, Stewart’s latest Irresistible is a bizarre misfire despite its promising agenda.

Irresistible follows Gary Zimmer (Steve Carrell, who worked on The Daily Show early in his career), a Democratic political executive searching for avenues to gain middle-Americans’ interest. After witnessing an inspiring town hall speech by retired marine Jack Hastings (Chris Cooper), Zimmer moves to the small Wisconsin town to run his campaign against Republican rival Faith Brewster (Rose Byrne).

Stewart’s film is a much-needed change-of-pace for the genre, admirably attempting to pointedly criticize the United State’s flawed political infrastructure. His script takes aim at White House elites’ ambivalent disdain towards their voter base, viewing their behind-the-scenes mucky mind games from both spectrums. I appreciate how Stewart cleverly implements Zimmeran’s elitist perspective throughout the narrative, viewing the townies as aw-shucks folksy simpletons the way a jaded executive would. This dynamic slyly builds to a third-act twist that cleverly eschews the audience’s preconceived notions, giving much-needed purpose to its simplistic character design.

Settling into the executive roles with ease, Steve Carrell and Rose Byrne are a joy to watch as dynamic love/hate rivals. Carrell feels tailor-made to play Zimmerman’s dismissive know-it-all personality, acerbically delivering bitting lines with a smarmy arrogance. His routine meshes well against Byrne’s well-tuned deadpan energy, with the two generating the film’s only laughs through sheer talent.

Considering Stewart’s wide-ranging ability and knowhow, Irresistible’s perplexing lack of presence behind-the-camera is a letdown to witness. His direction feels passive and stiff, suffering from bland visuals and a jumpy sitcom-esque score that plays moments too broadly. Stewart has acted as an outspoken lightning rod throughout his career, yet his film lacks the bite to examine its subject matter, saying little outside of generally obvious critiques.

Irresistible’s woeful swing-and-miss attempts at humor derail any of the project’s good intentions. Stewart’s attempts at capturing the awkward interplay between elites and average joes are stilted, with the script largely leaning on offbeat moments that are conceived without much wit. I can’t help but feel like there should be a more brazen version of this project, one that simultaneously condemns and satirizes the lingering disconnect with emphatic barbs.

Irresistible keys its focus towards vital subject matter, but lacks the sharp precision needed to properly satirize the ambivalence of our political infrastructure.

Trying: The BRWC Review. By Alif Majeed.

You always tend to be wary when a show tries to start with a loud bang by shocking the audience to get their attention. And Trying is a show that begins with a loud firecracker of a beginning where the leads (Jason and Nikki, a winning Rafe Spall and Esther Smith) realising that her monthly pregnancy cycle is almost over, need to have sex right then. The fact that they are on a public bus is not a concern for the desperate couple who decide to do it right there caution be damned. It is the kind of cheat used to start the show with a gag to grab eyeballs. 

It also grates how it tries to say something is cute in the show. Only instead of using a laugh track like a multi-camera show, Trying tries to substitute that by using cutesy upbeat music on cue as if to say, “Awe, look at us. So cute.” But even if the cutesy track gets annoying after a point and it still tries too hard to get us to like it for being charming and funny, it almost doesn’t need that in the first place. The good thing about Trying is that for most parts of its short first season, it manages to keep your attention even though it uses several tactics to make you try to really like it. And that track does grow on you after a while the same way the characters do.

Jason and Nikki are the typical new-generation couple who would probably be well loved all across the board when they were young, and when their futures were unclear. But then you realize that ten years later, they still haven’t grown up and haven’t managed to change their inherent immature nature. (it was a horrifying gut punch when I first watched Clerks 2 realized that they were still in the same store doing the same thing). Worried of their predicament, it starts to nag them (Nikki more so than Jason), and they decide that they need a child. It is scary that both seem to be blissfully unaware, at least in the beginning, as to why they are doing it instead of wanting a child.

Nikki is the girlfriend that everyone would want until you realize that years have passed, and all the cute things that you fell for in the first place becomes troublingly worrying. She is painfully aware of what makes her character cute and lovable, which worries her when she realizes that age might have caught up with her. Especially moments when she worries about her banal job and how people her age has moved way past her up the food chain. (“We are not doing a job we love but a job we are stuck in”) But Esther Smith infuses a bucket load of charm into the Nikki that you still might want to continue the ride with her.

Rafe Spall, who often seems to be associated with the role of a third wheel or a “Baxter” who gets dumped or fired by the end, finally gets a leading man role and makes full use of the opportunity. More at peace with the fact that age has caught up with him, (“Am old. I can do three things, and then I get tired.”), he takes up the calm, cool boyfriend role who always has a quip to defuse the situation quite well. You also feel for him when his calm exterior occasionally cracks and gets overwhelmed by their decision that they are so ill-equipped to handle (“You are afraid of everything so am not allowed to be afraid of anything?”)

Another important character in the show is Imelda Staunton, who plays the Penny, the child worker on their case. Penny reminds you of that sweet elderly old relative of yours who would gently manipulate you into doing something for them without you even figuring the manipulation until its too late. And Imelda Staunton does play the character with the right amount of playfulness that it is hard to figure out where her loyalty lies.

There is also the mandatory Harry met Sally best friend couple played by Ophelia Lovibond and Oliver Chris. Except imagine if Carrie Fischer and Bruno Kirby were married for a few years now. And their conversations are mostly about dealing with their children. As likable and effortless as they are in their roles, they just come across as the typical best friend couple who are used as springboards or projections to mirror or crystalize the lead’s situation. 

There is also a When Harry met Sally kind of interview sequences in the show. And the bus scene that happens at the beginning strongly reminds you of that iconic orgasm scene between Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal, complete with an old lady as a witness to it. 

That’s the thing about Trying. It does thread the same path that many shows and movies before it already has. And it is not as funny as it thinks it is. All that tides over to a large extent because of the two charming leads may not have convinced us that they would make good parents by the end. But we are sold on the fact that they might be there by each other’s side kicking and dragging each other to the finish line.

By Rowan Malyon.

Heart-breaking and eye-opening, Susan Rosenzweig proves that a documentary doesn’t need to be lengthy or big budget to get its point across. Though only a brief fifteen minutes, Baby Hers shines a light on the American dairy industry, intending to show how consumerism and indifference have led to cruel practices that are uncomfortable to digest.

Beginning with a quote from Agatha Christie’s The Last Séance, a short story about a woman desperate to get her child back, this film makes no bones about the director’s thoughts on the industry. Don’t let the somewhat plastic opening trick you. The use of the song ‘Baby Mine’ from Disney’s Dumbo, another tale about a mother being separated from her child, does come across as a little preachy. We can’t help but think, ‘oh, here we go again, another flimsy guilt trip’. But this is not the run of the mill conscience-hounder we are used to. This film aims to educate without instruction. It is descriptive not prescriptive. 

Footage of a woman talking about her newborn baby is interwoven with clips of calves being dragged away from their mothers. The animals’ mournful cries could make even the most stone-faced viewer recoil. Pictures from inside these industrial farms, of sick and injured cows and the harvesting process they go through for our benefit, do make one wonder how we could have let things get this bad. But this short film does not set out to convince people they need to stop drinking milk, just that we need reform, and rightly so, I think. 

What is refreshing about this documentary is that despite its short length, Rosenzweig gathers interviews from a range of sources. We hear from two passionate animal sanctuary owners against milk consumption; a vet and farmer trying to repopularise the more ethical, ‘old ways’ of farming; and the consumer, a mother, who would love more options when providing for her family. 

It is a balanced film and, perhaps because of its brevity, the first documentary that has actually made me want to seek out more. Helpfully, Rosenzweig makes this easy for us by providing links for more information at the end of her film. 

In one pithy message, she raises the point that milk consumption in the US has been on a steady decline since the 1970s. The Washington Post has published many articles questioning whether milk is all that useful in the way of bone development, and whether humans are even equipped to digest it, so this certainly is a change that consumers may be open to.

This is a topical film for a world constantly updating its ideas of what is right and what isn’t. It is guaranteed to make you feel something, whether it makes you change your consumer habits or not is up to you. It certainly made me think. Perhaps I’m biased, I’m lactose intolerant. But then, maybe we all should be.

A man (Thomas Cocquerel) wakes up in serious pain with no memory of how he got there after only what he can presume to be an accident. After realising something is wrong, he attempts to make his escape and out of what he assumes must be a hospital.

That’s where he meets his caretaker, (Angus Macfayden), a jovial man with a dark streak of menace who only wants to look after his patients. The male patient also meets a female patient (Camille Stopps) who has seemingly been there for longer than him and has a wary respect for their caretaker and knows exactly what he’s capable of doing, nonetheless the male patient wants to do his very best to escape.

Alive is a grim horror movie along the lines of the Saw franchise, with a similar setting that gives its audience very little to go on as the script drip feeds them what they need to know only as and when they need to know it. Isolated in what could only be an abandoned hospital, Alive has its cast claustrophobically close for the majority of the movie and Macfayden plays his sinister doctor to the point where being in his presence must have been very unnerving.

Cocquerel and Stopps also play their parts well, the unwilling victims who know nothing about themselves or each other have a good chemistry and the audience may want to root for their escape as the good doctor’s cruel treatments get more and more barbaric.

Mostly played as a generic horror movie, Alive does manage to turn some of the horror tropes on their heads and there are a couple of twists along the way. Although admittedly these twists do come with a certain suspension of disbelief.

However, by the time the movie ends the audience will have to decide for themselves whether the twists were worth all the drama, whether they made any sense or whether the movie’s twists were as well thought out as they appear.

A movie that will definitely please horror fans and one that will make you think about the ending long after it has finished.