Better Man - review

Over the past few years I’ve had my hands full with a couple of small life milestones. You know, having our first kid and completing a law degree. Now with a smidge more time on my hands, I’d like to get back to jotting down some thoughts on the films I watch. Far from an in-depth analysis, more just contemporaneous notes to figure out if I liked it or not.

Better Man from director Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman) details the life and escapades of everyone’s favourite former-bad-boy Robbie Williams. 

Having Robbie Williams represented as a CGI monkey in a biographical movie probably shouldn’t work, but ultimately it does. More on that later. Although the visual effects border on patchy now and then, the concept thankfully papers over the shortcomings of Better Man. 

Unlike the obscenely sanitised Bohemian Rhapsody, Better Man doesn’t shy away from the darker corners of Williams’ story. We’re treated to every pint sculled, line snorted, relationship trashed and the rest of Williams shitty antics along the way. Which is partially the problem, it’s all just a little cliche at this point. Inner demons summoned by a meteoric rise to success, resulting in near-nuclear meltdown via self destruction. In its defence, at least Better Man is somewhat critical of the very concept of fame and celebrity, albeit without proffering a new perspective. 

Now, the monkey of it all. I admire the creative decision to portray Robbie Williams this way. It felt fresh, without feeling like a gimmick. The use of a CGI character, allows Robbie Williams to voice his own portrayal. Coming on the heels of Elvis, Rocket Man, Back to Black and Bob Marley: One Love amongst other recent music biopics, I was more than happy to hear Williams effectively narrating his life, instead of watching a young actor doing their best Robbie impression. 

The depiction of the monkey extenuated the film’s themes of self-doubt and overcoming crippling anxiety. As it investigates the duality of the ‘performing monkey’ who possesses supreme confidence in the spotlight, but who’s hunted by intrusive thoughts . These thoughts are depicted by versions of Monkey Williams stalking him during his stage performances. Repetitive, but effective for the most part. 

While I’m mostly positive about Better Man, there’s some fairly glaring issues with the visual presentation. Full disclosure, I caught this at the cinema in picturesque Merimbula. Cute little cinema, but long overdue an upgrade across the board. There’s a digital sheen over the film that I just didn’t care for. It’s as if someone has smeared digital Vaseline over the lens. Doesn’t help that the film opts for a rather gaudy look which for me, undermined most of the emotional resonance the film achieved. 

Your mileage will most likely vary on how much you enjoy Robbie’s music. For me, the few gripes I had were quickly swept aside whenever the tunes kicked in. Much like Williams himself, Better Man isn’t really trying to be anything it’s not. It’s arguably just what you’re looking at this time of the year, when you’re not entirely sure what day it is and all you know is that you’ve eaten too much chocolate and cheese over Christmas.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

- Stu