The insanely boring life…

Hollywood has finally, after years of abandoning the Broadway musical, rediscovered the medium of musical movies and, more importantly, that audiences like them.

Shows such as Hairspray,  Chicago,  Dreamgirls (and to an extent, Phantom of the Opera) have been met with critical and commercial success.  Sweeney Todd is next in line, and its limited release is in December, followed by it’s wide release in January.

Many fans have been eagerly awaiting the Sweeney Todd trailer, and when it was released a brand new interest and audience in the show has been formed. Already predicted to be a serious Oscar contender, and yet we have only seen one trailer.

But there are many other musicals that deserve a Hollywood movie version. But which ones? I have made my list of shows I would like to see made into movies:

1. Wicked.  This show has seen success everywhere it has been performed. Those who have seen it will know that it is a megamusical spectacle. In order to achieve that same effect in a movie, it will have to be a grand, big budget bonanza with a great director and a major script rewrite to accommodate the medium. I think it might work best to rework the story to bring back some of the darker themes in the book which were eliminated from the musical. The script gave the story a distinct Disney-ish feeling, which might not work that well since you won’t be able to use your megamusical-get-out-of-jail-for-free card to save the story. (Chance of becoming a movie: 8/10)

2. Jekyll and Hyde. I confess that this musical isn’t the best one out there, but it has potential. It has struggled from having bad actors play the lead role, and if it is not done right it becomes laughable. It is a volatile situation, but it can work. This movie is in the works already, but as yet no studio wants to touch it. (Chance of becoming a movie: 7/10)

3. Into the Woods. A Stephen Sondheim fairytale-musical for adults. It is a wonderful show and can work really well on screen, if done in a similar style to “The Brothers Grimm”. The show is a bit long to just transfer directly to screen, so many songs will need to be cut or shortened. If Sweeney Todd does well, I think this musical might get greenlit. (Chance of becoming a movie: 6/10)

4. Sunday in the Park with George. This is a difficult musical to do. In order to make it a movie, you will have to COMPLETELY rewrite the script. You can get away with it by keeping it in its current state, but the second act won’t work, just as it barely worked on stage. They could always just cut the second act entirely, but then you loose two of the most beautiful songs in the show: Children and Art and Move On. (Chance of becoming a movie: 5/10)

5. Avenue Q. This movie will never happen, but I have it on the list because it is a fun musical. Just imagine for a moment what this will look like? Whatever studio takes this should not expect to make any money, but should just do it for the fun. But…look at it from another point of view: This musical was spawned from a TV show, which is a film medium. (Chance of becoming a movie: 1/10)