That’s about as good a setup for Cyrano as I can think of. Of course, the story of Cyrano de Bergerac as a play dates back to 1897, a fictionalized story about the real guy who lived in the 1600s. In the many adaptations for the stage and film for more than a century, the plot has been that Cyrano is a romantic and a poet and a swordsman, but he has a huge nose so big that he is hopeless to end up with the woman he secretly loves, his platonic friend Roxanne.
But Roxanne loves a beautiful man called Christian, and he loves her back. Christian enlists the help of Cyrano to secretly write love letters that he will give to Roxanne as if he had written them himself. Of course, Roxanne falls even further with the romantic words that flow from the page into her heart.
And will Cyrano’s love ever land in Roxanne’s heart? No spoilers from me- not even for a century old plot.
Which brings us to the most recent version- -itself an adaptation of a 2018 musical with Peter Dinklage and Haley Bennett reprising their roles.
The film is gorgeously shot and is not strictly a Broadway-type musical with the songs driving the narrative – they are more spaced apart and as writer Erica Schmidt has pointed out – the songs are really meant to give a window into the characters’ souls, and they are mostly sung when a character is alone, so that makes sense.
I’m sorry to report that many of the songs are unmemorable and both Dinklage and Kelvin Harrison Jr., who plays Christian, are really not so great singers. Both are, of course, amazing actors, but they lose some of their emotion as they seemingly concentrate on doing the part that isn’t their specialty.
Only Haley Bennett soars vocally – a good example is the song I Need More ,which even features a little choreography, and shows off her range. The great Glen Hansard gets a moment with a pretty song late in the film that he absolutely crushes. I love that guy.
Finally, about Dinklage, who, instead of wearing an absurdly big nose (see below), uses himself, his own being, as a person with a form of Dwarfism to embody the pain of someone who would not be a first choice guy like Christian when it comes to love at first sight from a Roxanne. It works. Dinklage pulls off the performance, and there’s no movie without that.
The Many Noses of Cyrano Past
A period musical is not everyone’s cup of tea, but for those who lean toward that genre, Cyrano presents itself as a good choice at the theatre (and streaming at some point in the future, too).
3 out of 4 Stars | In Limited Theatrical Release January 28th – details to come on streaming
