Robbie Williams is, fittingly, one of many biggest showmen to ever come out of the UK, so a biopic actually did really feel inevitable. Nevertheless, the selection to make use of a CGI monkey to play the singer was surprising – surprisingly, it was the perfect resolution the film made. But, it takes greater than a monkey to create a standout musical biopic, and Higher Man had that in Michael Gracey. Most notable for guiding The Best Showman, Gracey has an actual imaginative and prescient in terms of massive set-piece numbers, there’s a motive “This Is Me” created a lot noise. The “Rock DJ” efficiency in Higher Man tops it when it comes to spectacle and imaginative and prescient. In truth, it’d simply be the perfect musical quantity placed on the display screen in 2024 – and sure, that features Depraved! The entire scene is so intricately crafted, and completely encapsulates the characterization of Williams. It’s Gracey at his very best and warrants a viewing of Higher Man by itself.
Michael Gracey Pulls Off His Best Musical Quantity with “Rock DJ”
“Rock DJ” is available in Higher Man simply as Take That, the band Robbie Williams was initially in earlier than he discovered fame as a soloist, have signed their first document deal. The plot main as much as this second has centered on Williams’ childhood, his desires of being a performer, and his full surprise surrounding the celebrity trade, regardless of individuals’s doubts about his probabilities of making it. “Rock DJ” is a turning level within the film, because it represents the second Williams’ childhood desires come true and tracks his rise.
Take That burst out of the document label places of work onto a busy Regent’s Avenue, considered one of London’s most iconic places. The placement was so vital to Gracey, however after the loss of life of Queen Elizabeth II, the entire sequence was practically minimize, because the UK went right into a mourning interval in the course of the proposed filming interval. The manufacturing managed to boost the cash wanted once more and waited till they may use Regent’s Avenue once more, and it undoubtedly paid off. Taking pictures on location permits the dimensions of the second to shine via, however it was not a straightforward feat. Filmed over 4 nights, the scene required the re-routing of bus routes and the entire road to be shut down. Gracey was even instructed that all proof of filming needed to be passed by 6 am day-after-day or the crew wouldn’t be allowed to movie the next day. It’s a enormous feat to drag off, with over 500 extras filling the busy road, however this dedication to tangibility is what makes the scene so electrical.
‘Higher Man’ Makes use of Set Design to Showcase Robbie Williams’ Perspective
What makes Higher Man so distinctive is Williams’ affect on the film, the pop star even voices himself. This makes the film extraordinarily private, and this bleeds into “Rock DJ,” as it’s Take That’s rise to fame however from Williams’ perspective. All through, his chimpanzee type is the main focus, and every little thing is occurring round him, representing how he was in the midst of this enormous whirlwind. The sequence is extraordinarily intricate and crafted, all seeming to be one shot achieved by fluid digicam actions and seamless transitions. It’s sensory overload, with the scene overwhelmed with exercise to point out the sheer pace of the band’s success.
Gracey additionally makes use of a variety of childlike set items to replicate the naivety and youth of Williams, as he was solely 15 when he joined Take That. The band bounce on pogo sticks completely in time to the beat, in a second that emulates the sliding glasses from The Best Showman’s “The Different Aspect”. There’s even an overflowing gumball machine, an thought conceived by Gracey when he was engaged on a potential dwell motion remake of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. He makes use of these absurd props to bolster the truth that that is Williams’ perspective, that is the surprise he felt throughout that preliminary rise to fame.
Having Jonno Davis, the bodily actor for Williams, dancing on the road with the solid fairly than having a purely CGI monkey added to the immersion. The actor was wearing a grey swimsuit to realize this, and it allowed him to really be the guts of the scene and helped it really feel so expressive and alive. The entire scene is an excessive amount of to absorb one viewing, it creates this heightened sense of actuality. Sure, it’s Robbie’s dream which permits for this fantastical spectacle, but using actual places and other people makes the scene really feel tangible. It blends the huge extravagance of musical theater with the emotional depth of Robbie’s interior emotions. By way of musical numbers from the final 12 months, nothing else comes shut.
Higher Man is now enjoying in choose theaters.

Directed by Michael Gracey, Higher Man explores the life and profession of singer Robbie Williams via his personal eyes.
- Launch Date
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December 25, 2024
- Solid
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robbie williams
, Jonno Davies
, Steve Pemberton
, Alison Steadman
, Damon Herriman
, Anthony Hayes
, Kate Mulvany