Better Man Review
A glorious, toe-tapping, inventive exploration of a man on the edge.
Better Man follows the story of Robbie Williams; a young street urchin from the north of England, who sees a future (one he’s dreamed of since his father left him) in a boy band audition. He makes it into the popular band Take That, but his drug habits and antics (alongside his desire for more than just one fifth of the spotlight) lead him to a solo career; one that takes off to huge response, and is met with an equally huge catastrophe of spirit.
Michael Gracey tackles Better Man with his usual extravagance.
There is, of course, the monkey aspect to this whole thing; Robbie Williams being rendered as a CGI ape for the entire runtime. It is perhaps initially distracting, and occasionally takes some of the punch away, but for the most part the CGI just winds up fading into the background as Gracey immerses you into the story.
The extravagance is moreso in the numerous wonderful, out there set pieces. The Rock DJ sequence in particular is fantastic; completely inventive and innovative, and wildly exciting - but is just one of a range of wonderful musical beats.
Robbie Williams’ story provides a great anchor to this plot, and in exploring his unique background, Gracey does a little creative wrangling to fit his uniquely dramatic life into a plot that delivers a sort of perfect arc; a rousing send-off that will have you in tears, and not for the first time in the film. It’s a movie that doesn’t necessarily push the bounds of conventional storytelling from a narrative perspective, but much like the score, it loves to play the hits - and sometimes that’s all you need.
There are lots of lovely little performances, but they do sort of get drowned out by the giant talking ape. What stands out more by the end is the incredible visual spectacle (including wonderful CGI outside of the primate), the inventive transitions, and the amazing soundtrack - alongside the heartbreaking and heartwarming narrative.
In the end, Better Man is a triumph of creative, and a biopic that will not only have you singing Robbie’s songs for the rest of the week, but also thinking about the insights into his life.