I am so excited for this film. Oh my God, there's a film with a release date on the horizon, and it's an adaptation of a musical that I genuinely love (but sadly have not seen yet, thanks COVID-19.) If you're unaware of what Everybody's Talking About Jamie is, I think the five WhatsOnStage Award wins say it all really.
The premise follows a 16-year-old schoolboy from Sheffield called Jamie New, who when asked about his future aspirations, proudly declares that he wants to be a performer. Not only a performer, but a drag queen sensation. The musical is based on a documentary made in 2011 following the same premise, called Jamie: A Drag Queen at 16 by Jenny Popplewell.
Everybody's Talking About Jamie explores the issues and stigmatisation that Jamie experiences as he tries to follow his dream, coming "out of the darkness, into the spotlight" (sorry, I had to.) The film will be directed by Jonathan Butterell, and it's his first feature film debut. Whilst it can be risky to hire a newcomer to the big screen for such an anticipated film, I have no doubt in his abilities, as he directed the West End stage production in 2018.
Even though the trailer has only just been dropped, people are already praising it for looking like a good musical theatre adaptation of a film, which is pretty much unheard of these days. Honestly, it looks like it's going to be true to the musical whilst being mindful of being on the big screen, and that's all I could ever ask for. To hell with musical realism (thanks for nothing, Tom Hooper), to hell with poor adaptations, give me what I want: A musical adaptation which keeps its integrity.
[G]ive me what I want: A musical adaptation which keeps its integrity
To say that I am excited is an understatement, I literally cried watching the trailer- it's a 'Work of Art.' Everybody's Talking About Jamie is the perfect musical to turn into a film, and although Max Harwood (who is playing Jamie New) is a newcomer to movies, he has already won me over and I cannot wait to see the full film.
Personally, I think the film adaptation of Everybody's Talking About Jamie is gonna be a hit (and we all already know it.)
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