There are just two moments in “Jersey Boys” that are worth talking about.
The first one finds our fake Frankie Valli (John Lloyd Young) singing a soft, acapella version of My Eyes Adored You to his near-estranged daughter as he puts her to bed. It’s a rare occasion that he is present to tuck her in and as he finishes his song his little girl asks him “Do you like me?” Sad stuff.The disconnect between a father and child is captured here and the film is never as real as that brief moment.
There is also an exciting closing number as the entire cast sings and dances to Who Loves You. There is energy and life to the number that is not found in the rest of the movie or its numerous musical interludes. It is easily the best time to clap along and feel the joy in the pure innocence of Mr. Valli and his Four Season’s music. AND IT DOESN’T HAPPEN UNTIL THE CLOSING CREDITS OF A TWO HOUR AND FIFTEEN MINUTE LONG MOVIE!!!
I blame Clint Eastwood. I respect the man and his often eclectic taste in projects. From WWII films told almost entirely in the Japanese language(Letters from Iwo Jim) to heart smashing dramas (Mystic River) to a thinly veiled public service announcement regarding euthanasia (Million Dollar Baby) Mr. Eastwood has had an admirable career as a film director. But I firmly believe that at 84 years old the edge has dulled. He has not made a film with any nuance or substance since Gran Torino in 2008.
With Jersey Boys Eastwood never connects with the material and seems at a loss on what to do with a musical in staging, pacing and performing. Save for the casting of Christopher Walken (who begins the film with some of the most Christopher Walken-y line deliveries we’ve seen in years) Eastwood used actors from the Broadway production of Jersey Boys to play all of the leads. While using unknowns is usually a good thing, the acting here is stilted and too broad. Acting that is (miraculously) better suited for the stage. The one exception is Erich Bergen as Valli’s writing partner, Bob Gaudio. Of all these Boys, he’s the one with the brightest future.
The musical numbers are all performances on the stage or television shows and there is no telling the difference between any of the scenes. To steal the best idea from the film version of Les Misérables, Eastwood also decided to capture the singing “live” during the filming and any positive results are almost nonexistent. The actors are so polished that you can barely tell that the songs aren’t being lip-synced. Kudos to the singers: you sing so well that it sounds pre-recorded.
Another thing that plagues Jersey Boys is that the character roster is filled with nothing but stereotyped caricatures. Jersey born Italians that you’d find in a cartoon made in the 40’s. All the women are dealt with briefly and sadly contribute nothing. The Four Season’s producer, Bob Crewe (played by Mr. Mike Doyle who cannot be proud), is presented as the most 2 dimensional gay character I’ve seen on screen in decades. Doyle rushes through his lines as if he can’t wait for his scenes to be over.
The biggest killer here that trumps the poor performances is the film’s pacing. It is sloooow with dead air stuffed thick between nearly every line of dialogue. Mr. Eastwood needs to hire a new editor. One that can tell him when to tighten. One that can tell him when to stop. All signs point to stopping right now.