Review: In The Heights

Image courtesy of Warner Bros.

Exuberant and bursting with life, director John M. Chu's adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda's Broadway musical is the year's most pleasant surprise. Exhibiting an almost manic energy in nearly every scene, the film is the first of its type to understand how big-screen musicals are supposed to move and feel since "La La Land." 

In terms of story, it tells time-worn tales - in this case, of Usnavi (Anthony Ramos), a good natured young man who operates a bodega with his undocumented younger cousin, Sonny (Gregory Diaz IV), whom he mentors, all the while dreaming of moving back to his parents' homeland in the Dominican Republic, where he hopes to operate his own business.

But the story of Usnavi - whose name has an amusing origin - is only one of several to be told in "In the Heights." There's also his love interest, Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), who dreams of moving out of Washington Heights, where the story is set, to Manhattan to become a fashion designer. She has a knack for finding gems to turn into clothing while dumpster diving. 

Then, there's Benny (Corey Hawkins), Usnavi's best friend who works as a dispatcher at a limo company operated by Kevin (Jimmy Smits), whose daughter, Nina (Leslie Grace), is the girl who got out of the neighborhood to study at Stanford University. But she's back in town, and doesn't know how to break the news that she wants to drop out of school after feeling as if she doesn't fit in.

While these are the lead characters in the film, a number of other supporting characters are vividly brought to life by those who portray them - most notably, Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz, who played the role in the stage production), an elderly Cuban woman who acts as a mother figure to the neighborhood's younger denizens. But there's also a trio of spunky hairdressers (Daphne Rubin-Vega, Stephanie Beatriz and Dascha Polanco), a neighborhood piragua vendor (Miranda) and a graffiti artist (Noah Catala).

New York City - once my home - has been the setting for thousands of movies over the years, but "In the Heights" is among the few that actually portray what life actually looks like in a neighborhood outside of Manhattan. Much is made in the picture about what it means to be a community, and the one portrayed in Chu's film actually gives off the vibe of one in the five boroughs.

It also helps that the entire cast can really sing, and the dance numbers are often jaw dropping - especially a Busby Berkeley-styled one at a swimming pool and another visually compelling one in which Usnavi looks out his bodega window and a large number of dancers are reflected in its window. The film also pulls at the heartstrings, but in a manner that doesn't feel trite. The stories surrounding the characters and their various plights - and their hopes and dreams involved in being an immigrant in modern America - are deeply felt.

Ramos gives a star-making performance as Usnavi, while the rest of the film's primarily young cast will also likely become more recognizable after their excellent turns in the film. Chu previously directed "Crazy Rich Asians," which was often amusing, but just as often over-the-top. Here, his do-it-large sensibilities pay off significantly more. 

And those who were blown away by Miranda's iconic stage production of "Hamilton" will be pleased to learn that this previous creation - which debuted on Broadway before "Hamilton" - is also bursting with imagination. He's undoubtedly the most exciting voice in musicals - onscreen or onstage - working today. 

"In the Heights" is a lovely, rousing and highly entertaining musical and the first must-see movie of the summer. For more than a year, audiences have been mostly absent from movie theaters due to the coronavirus pandemic. It might take a little while to lure people back to cinemas, but if there's any big Hollywood movie that displays exactly what audiences have been missing, this is it.