Better Man

The documentary that follows the struggles of pop star Robbie Williams as he navigates his way through fame.

I shall start by saying I am not a Robbie Williams fan. He's had some great tracks out in the past, I actually know all the words to Angels, and that's only 1 of about a dozen songs I know all the words to, 9 of them being Taylor Swift songs. But anyway, my friend wanted to see the film as she is a big Williams fan so I agreed to accompany her and boy, am I glad I did.

Why is there an ape instead of Robbie Williams? Well Williams claims that fame is dogged by people expecting him to be a performing monkey. And I concur with that. You only have to watch modern chat shows to realise that all people want their stars to do is perform like a monkey for them. This is Robbie at his most truthful, telling it like it is without fear of repercussion. I like him already, as I like truthful people. This though extends into his film too. His film is not about his music, there's only 2 or 3 tracks played the whole way through. The film is not even really about his fame directly: the film is about him. How he copes (or does not) with fame, how he copes with competition (or does not) how he copes with rejection and frustration, (or does not), how he revels in drink and drugs and how he eventually sinks so low and alienates his closest friends that he has to seek therapy to bring him back to a functioning human.

It is a staggeringly honest film and he does not shirk from his mistakes, nor the mistakes of others. He does not portray himself as a victim although in some ways I think he was. He wants everyone to understand who he is, who he was, and what shaped him to this point.

The cinematography is exquisite. The lighting and colours beautiful, the dancing at times is mesmerising: the scene in the main street that appears to have thousands of people in is just cinematic perfection. The CGI ape dances like the best dancer in the world and it is so great to watch I was actually taken aback by how beautiful it was.

I now have a positive opinion of this man who can bare his soul to all and sundry and do it with panache and style and brutal honesty. I would urge anyone who likes cinema to watch this film just for the cinematic experience if nothing else. Kudos to Erik Wilson (cinematographer), beautiful work. I gave it a solid 8.

Better Man is how biopics should be told if their subject is still around as it tells Robbie Williams story from his perspective in every aspect, from his own narration infused with boat loads of northern charm to the biggest swing it takes in the form of the CGI ape taking centre stage as a perfect metaphor for the way he sees himself. It's refreshingly honest and deeply personal with big Rocketman vibes and a high energy it sustains from the moment it arrives.

This is a story about the perils of being addicted to the spotlight and the emotion that comes attached to it is only enhanced by the performance capture and visual effects employed to bring this less evolved Robbie Williams to life. It's not like most other lead performances in biopics since Williams himself is present in the narration and songs, so it becomes a case of his work and Jonno Davies' seamless performance moving as one.

Michael Gracey's direction confirms that he's got a gift for directing musicals by making them as visually dynamic as possible. The musical numbers are so inventive and do some truly insane things that work beautifully because of how they help to tell the story and communicate everything Robbie is struggling with as it goes along. There's a lot of speedy transitions contained in them as well which really helps to maintain the energy.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this movie but went with an open mind. I'm not a massive RW fan but like his music and was intrigued by the premise of Robbie Williams being portrayed as an ape in a film about his life story - er, excuse me?

As a result, you know this won't be a conventional biopic but you soon get used to Robbie the ape and the story moves along in fairly chronological order telling you key moments in his life. The movie is visually spectacular in places and the special effects are very good. The telling of the story gives added poignancy to some of his song lyrics and the music is used to good effect throughout (I left the cinema with some of the songs stuck in my head).

You don't have to be a big Robbie Williams fan to enjoy the film but if you don't like his music, or him as a person, this film is probably unlikely to win you over. The only criticisms I'd make is the amount of swearing in a movie that's rated 15 - it seemed a bit unnecessary and the story lags in a few places. Other than that, it's surprisingly good.

"Better Man" is a surprising flick.

Not because of the monkey, the effect of that gimmick wears off pretty quickly. Although it is surprising how fast I became accustomed to the singing chimpanzee and how invested and heartened I got by the story.

But even though all of that is true, the main motive for my astoundment was how honest the movie was.

"Better Man" gives us a very raw look into Robbie Williams life, flaws and all. Actually, his flaws are what's under the spotlight. Even the choice of representing himself as an ape reflects that. At the beginning of the movie, Robbie's voice-over explains to us that we are about to see how he sees himself.

William's suffered from eating disorders, self-image problems and a multitude of mental health and drug related issues. "Better Man" doesn't shy away from the various factors that forged this hellish psychological landscape and offers us interesting insight into the life and mind of an artist that, on top of all that, also suffered from "fame".

Despite this, I found the movie to be an assault on the senses. It's too much all the time, with brief moments of rest inbetween. After the story picks momentum, it doesn't stop. Conversations mend with narration. Each event unravels into the next. An emotional moment turns into song and it never lets up. At 2 hours and 15 minutes runtime, it's a very tiring ordeal. Nonetheless, it's narratively cohesive and it makes sense to be like this. It even makes sense that the film offers us zero introspection. It's all a fitting portrayal of the person it aims to represent on-screen and consistent with its objective of entertaining audiences. It's just a shame it didn't reach one.

Better Man (2024) is a movie I first heard about from Fantastic Fest back in September and I thought that this was the most ridiculous thing I've heard about all year long. Then I watched the movie and it kicked a lot of ass.

Positives for Better Man (2024): Now on paper, this is a movie that shouldn't have worked for me and somehow the filmmakers actually got me to care about the story of Robbie Williams as a CGI ape via Planet of the Apes. Yes, I know it sounds like I made that stuff up, but I swear that this is a real movie. There are moments where I cared about what was happening in the story. I also have to give props to the filmmakers for making this a fantasy musical because as wacky as the movie is, everything about it worked for me. And finally, this movie is a perfect example of how to take a ridiculous premise for any movie and actually get audiences to care about the story and the characters.

Overall, Better Man (2024) is one of the biggest surprise for in 2024 and I am so happy that I love this movie. This is one of the movies that I will be recommending to people the most.