One of the best musical drama’s in quite a while, In the Heights shines with the singing, acting and dancing. It’s a refreshing love story and a homage to Washington Heights, NY City in the 1970’s with amazing vocals, including a touching show-stopping aria by Olga Merediz. Nicely directed by Jon M. Chu (who’s also noted for two of the Step-up sequels), with sweet choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler (who won a Tony Award for the stage production in 2008), and awesome cinematography by Alice Brooks.
Caught up in the changing of the barrio Washington Heights, Usnavi de la Vega (Anthony Ramos), Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), Benny (Corey Hawkins), and Nina Rosario (Leslie Grace) have dreams of moving on. But what they don’t realize right now, is they have already arrived.
Usnavi wants to return to his birth country of the Dominican Republic and re-open the beach bar his father once had. He’s been saving a portion of the salary he gets from the neighborhood bodega. His love interest Vanessa works as a beautician at the local hair salon and makes a fair income, but not what she’s like it to be. Usnavi’s friend Benny works as a dispatcher for Kevin Rosario (Jimmy Smits) and has earned his way to manager spot. He has his eye on the lovely Nina, his boss’s daughter.
Nina, however has a problem. Just returning from her first year at Stanford where she has been majoring in fashion, Nina has doubts about her future at that University. She has been bothered by missed payments on her tuition and the attitude of the students has been a lot to be desired. Director Jon M. Chu uses the dreams of the two couples to build a story that kindles romance and determination during one summer they will never forget.
What makes the film remarkable involves the music, dancing and vocals by the whole cast. The dialogue by Usnavi has an energetic hip-hop beat that works very well for Anthony Ramos as he tells his story and interacts with the other three characters. Through the pop rap music we learn about the culture, Usnavi’s feelings toward Vanessa and his dreams. His delivery and the dialogue content is refreshing as it contains no negativity, vulgar language or violent messages.
Playing the part of the neighborhood “mother”, Abuela Claudia brings a lot of compassion to the film. Here place is the oasis of the block where she always has an open door and food on the table. A heartfelt song “Paciencia Y Fe” and sung by Olga Merediz as Abuela Claudia is a standout.
In the Heights has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for some language and suggestive references. However, there’s very little vulgar comments and the suggestive references should not be a problem for mature pre-teens. An accompanying adult is still a good idea however. The film will be in theaters, IMAX and HBO+ on June 11, 2021. For the best experience however, seek out a movie theater that has Dolby Atmos sound, and shown on a screen with as large a screen as you can find. The movie was filmed in Washington Heights, NY City, NY. I give the film my highest rating 5 Stars.
Additional Film Information:
Cast: Olga Merediz, Anthony Ramos, Melissa Barrera, Stephanie Beatriz, Jimmy Smits, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Leslie Grace, Corey Hawkins, Gregory Diaz IV, Dascha Polanco,
Directed and written by: Jon M. Chu
Genre: Musical, Drama
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some language and suggestive references
Running Time: 2 hrs. 23 min.
Opening Date: June 11, 2021
Distributed by: Warner Bros.
Released in: Theaters
Writer, critic, film editor John Delia, Sr. has been on all sides of the movie business from publications to film making. He has worked as a film critic with ACED Magazine for more than 20 years and other publications for a total of 40 years. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Florida. John is a member of the Southeastern Film Critics Association and Critics Association of Central Florida Send John a message at jdelia@acedmagazine.com
