Everybody's Talking About Jamie
Year: 2021
Directed by: Jonathan Butterell
Starring: Richard E. Grant, Shobna Gulati, Max Harwood, Ralph Ineson, Sarah Lancashire & Lauren Patel
Runtime: 115 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 27/10/21
Directed by: Jonathan Butterell
Starring: Richard E. Grant, Shobna Gulati, Max Harwood, Ralph Ineson, Sarah Lancashire & Lauren Patel
Runtime: 115 mins
BBFC: 12
Published: 27/10/21
With the success of Ru Paul’s Drag Race, and the growing presence of LGBTQ+ representation in the media, drag culture has firmly planted itself in the minds of the general public. Men dressing up in women’s clothing, adopting a new persona and going on stage to entertain the masses. I love a good drag show, the performances are completely captivating, the costumes glamorous, and the audience are a pleasure to be a part of. So, with the success of British musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, about the true story of a sixteen-year-old boy who became a drag queen, of course a film was going to be on the cards. So does the film put on its highest heels and dazzle, or does it smudge its makeup and trip on its dress?
Jamie New (Max Harwood) is a sixteen-year-old boy who loves to dress in women’s clothes and has done since he was little. He also loves being the centre of attention, a true diva if there ever was one. But when challenged by his schoolteachers that entertainment isn’t a real job and that he can’t come to the school prom wearing a dress, Jamie begins his journey to becoming Mimi Me, Sheffield’s hottest new drag queen. But as news begins to spread about Jamie’s extra-curricular activities he must confront those who put him down and overcome his own insecurities with the help of his mum (Sarah Lancashire), and his best friend Pritti (Lauren Patel).
Jamie New (Max Harwood) is a sixteen-year-old boy who loves to dress in women’s clothes and has done since he was little. He also loves being the centre of attention, a true diva if there ever was one. But when challenged by his schoolteachers that entertainment isn’t a real job and that he can’t come to the school prom wearing a dress, Jamie begins his journey to becoming Mimi Me, Sheffield’s hottest new drag queen. But as news begins to spread about Jamie’s extra-curricular activities he must confront those who put him down and overcome his own insecurities with the help of his mum (Sarah Lancashire), and his best friend Pritti (Lauren Patel).
I’ve wanted to see Everybody’s Talking About Jamie for some time, but mostly due to the cost of tickets to see it at the West End I’ve been unable to. So, the film adaptation was something I was looking forward to checking out. Thankfully Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is pretty much exactly what I was looking for. It’s a heart-warming story with a ton of laughs and some good songs. But I can’t say it’s quite as special as I feel it had been made out to be.
The real meat of Jamie’s story is him gaining the confidence to be comfortable wearing women’s cloths, both as Mimi and as Jamie, and each persona has different hurdles to overcome in doing this. For Mimi to get up on stage, Jamie must trust in himself, leave Jamie at the door, and step into the role he was born to play with help from his mentor Hugo (Richard E. Grant). But for Jamie to be comfortable wearing women’s clothes in public, as Jamie, it takes a whole different kind of confidence and self-belief. Jamie must confront pressure from his peers and his family, overcoming the pain he endures from them, and educating them in the process.
I was scared that Everybody’s Talking About Jamie was going to fall into the usual trap when it comes to homophobic characters, where everything was going to be forgiven and it would all be sunshine and daisies come the credits; thankfully though Everybody’s Talking About Jamie eschews these cliché pitfalls in favour of a slightly more realistic interpretation of events. It’s not that Jamie’s critics suddenly have a change of heart, but more that Jamie outgrows them to the point where they can no longer harm him.
I felt that the weakest part of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie was the songs, which for a musical is basically its Achilles Heel. Whilst they certainly aren’t bad, they aren’t songs I’m ever going to put on my Spotify playlist and belt at the top of my lungs in the shower, or dance around my flat to whilst I do housework. None of them really resonated with me, and I didn’t feel like any of them were well enough performed to warrant listening to them outside of the film. At best they’re functional, they serve the purpose they need but even now writing this review I can’t say I remember any of the lyrics. The only song that I remember striking an emotional chord with me was Hugo’s performance of ‘This Was Me’.
What I do vividly remember though is the great music video style dance numbers that accompany these songs. They are all visually unique from each other and really add some glamour to the proceedings. My personal favourite was ‘Work of Art’ which took on a hyper-stylised tone with colours shifting from bright pastels to monochrome and everything in between to the beat of the music.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is, on the whole, a very enjoyable coming of age musical about discovering who you really are. Whilst the songs aren’t something I would write home about, the story was delivered so well and the musical sequences were so engaging to watch that I had a great time regardless. It has made me want to go and watch the stage show even more, and it’s considerably better than Amazon’s other attempt at making a movie musical this year.
The real meat of Jamie’s story is him gaining the confidence to be comfortable wearing women’s cloths, both as Mimi and as Jamie, and each persona has different hurdles to overcome in doing this. For Mimi to get up on stage, Jamie must trust in himself, leave Jamie at the door, and step into the role he was born to play with help from his mentor Hugo (Richard E. Grant). But for Jamie to be comfortable wearing women’s clothes in public, as Jamie, it takes a whole different kind of confidence and self-belief. Jamie must confront pressure from his peers and his family, overcoming the pain he endures from them, and educating them in the process.
I was scared that Everybody’s Talking About Jamie was going to fall into the usual trap when it comes to homophobic characters, where everything was going to be forgiven and it would all be sunshine and daisies come the credits; thankfully though Everybody’s Talking About Jamie eschews these cliché pitfalls in favour of a slightly more realistic interpretation of events. It’s not that Jamie’s critics suddenly have a change of heart, but more that Jamie outgrows them to the point where they can no longer harm him.
I felt that the weakest part of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie was the songs, which for a musical is basically its Achilles Heel. Whilst they certainly aren’t bad, they aren’t songs I’m ever going to put on my Spotify playlist and belt at the top of my lungs in the shower, or dance around my flat to whilst I do housework. None of them really resonated with me, and I didn’t feel like any of them were well enough performed to warrant listening to them outside of the film. At best they’re functional, they serve the purpose they need but even now writing this review I can’t say I remember any of the lyrics. The only song that I remember striking an emotional chord with me was Hugo’s performance of ‘This Was Me’.
What I do vividly remember though is the great music video style dance numbers that accompany these songs. They are all visually unique from each other and really add some glamour to the proceedings. My personal favourite was ‘Work of Art’ which took on a hyper-stylised tone with colours shifting from bright pastels to monochrome and everything in between to the beat of the music.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is, on the whole, a very enjoyable coming of age musical about discovering who you really are. Whilst the songs aren’t something I would write home about, the story was delivered so well and the musical sequences were so engaging to watch that I had a great time regardless. It has made me want to go and watch the stage show even more, and it’s considerably better than Amazon’s other attempt at making a movie musical this year.