Lin-Manuel Miranda directs this film adaptation of the autobiographical musical by Jonathan Larson with tick, tick…BOOM! Jonathan Larson (Andrew Garfield) is a struggling musical theatre writer on the cusp on his 30th birthday, who has been developing the dystopian sci-fi rock musical Superbia for the past eight years. Jon has finally been given the chance by Ira Weitzman (Jonathan Marc Sherman) to present a workshop on the musical and he has been struggling to develop the key musical number. However, Jon is so focused on his workshop, that he begins to neglect the needs of his girlfriend Susan (Alexandra Shipp) and best friend Michael (Robin de Jesus).
Lin-Manuel Miranda (Hamilton) makes his directorial debut with tick, tick…BOOM!, based on the autobiographical musical of the same name written and performed by Jonathan Larson, who would go on to write the influential 1996 musical RENT, though Larson tragically never lived to see the premiere. This film adaptation of tick, tick…BOOM! recreates a performance of the original stage production as a framing device for the story, where Jonathan Larson is struggling to finish his musical Superbia, which he hopes will finally see him escape from the brink of poverty. Meanwhile, Jon's best friend Michael has moved on from an aspiring actor to an advertising job and Jon's girlfriend Susan is about to leave New York to start a new job and Jon is given the choice whether to leave with her or continue his work as a struggling artist. Another major concern for Jon is the number of friends in the artistic community he has been losing to the ongoing AIDS epidemic.
I don't pretend to be an expert on musical theatre, though I am familiar enough to know how big a deal Jonathan Larson's RENT was, though Larson would tragically die of an aortic aneurysm at the very young age of 35 before the musical was able to premiere. Despite being based on a show originally performed six years before RENT, it is almost expected that most will go into tick, tick…BOOM! with at least a passing knowledge of who Jonathan Larson was, though narration at the start and end of the film makes sure to catch viewers up.
If anything, Lin-Manuel Miranda's background in musicals probably helps with making tick, tick…BOOM! one of the better presented modern film musicals, where the presentation is a bit more than simply characters randomly begin singing. Apart from the performance framing device, which frequently features Vanessa Hudgens as performer Karessa, there is a musical number styled as a hip-hop music video and a very surreal brunch sequence at the diner where Jonathan Larson works his day job as a waiter. Lin-Manuel Miranda also cast tick, tick…BOOM! with people with previous stage experience, which includes star Andrew Garfield himself, who acted on both Broadway and London's West End, along with Robin de Jesús and Joshua Henry, who both previously worked with Lin-Manuel Miranda on his stage productions. The film also features Bradley Whitford playing musical theatre legend Stephen Sondheim, who acts as a bit of a mentor for Jonathan Larson.
Ultimately, I would say that my biggest takeaway for tick, tick…BOOM! is that if you are a fan of Jonathan Larson's RENT, you will probably enjoy this adaptation of Larson's earlier autobiographical musical.
tick, tick…BOOM! opens on Friday, November 12, 2021 at the TIFF Bell Lightbox and will be available to stream on Netflix beginning on Friday, November 19, 2021.
Trailer for tick, tick…BOOM!
