I really didn’t know what I was in for going into The Greatest Showman. The modern music infused into a New York City, where the country was going through the financial crisis in the late 1830s, made me almost cringe at how that would work. I heard the songs first. All of them. I loved them all. I just wasn’t sure how they would sit in a film that’s meant to be set in the early 1800s.

The Greatest Showman takes us into the unique and spectacular world of P.T Barnum as portrayed by Hugh Jackman. The rags-to-riches story starts us off with a young Barnum and the very first moments he fell in love with his one and only love at the time, Charity (Michelle Williams), as he promises her a life of lavishes. 
Made redundant at his job whilst having a wild imagination, we quickly see Barnum spark up his idea of creating a show of unique individuals with diverse talents and skills. Soon, the people of the city become apprehensive of such a thing existing. Their abnormality makes them a target for bullying. The Herald’s critique, James Gordon Bennet (Paul Sparks) calls it a ‘circus’ in one of his reviews. So, that’s what it became, and that is how the circus was born.

Wanting to prove he is more than just a guy that hangs out with a bunch of ‘weirdos’, Barnum brings to America, Europe’s biggest sensation, opera singer Jenny Lind (Rebecca Ferguson). But, in doing this, Barnum forgets where he came from and why he got into show business in the first place, setting him up for failure in business, friendship and love.

The Greatest Showman is the musical we needed right now. The themes right through this film are touching and powerful, and everybody needs to see it. This Is Me is by far the best suited song for the theme of diversity, uniqueness and self-esteem, that seeps right through the entire thing. It highlights bullying and how the human race fails to embrace these types of qualities, only because it’s not normal to what they’re used to. Once Jenny Lind came in, Barnum was accepted and praised, however he got too good for himself. Being humble is another strong theme, reminding viewers to never forget where you came from, because if you get to ahead of yourself, your true love, your true friends, and your true self walk away leaving you with nothing.
As for the music itself, my worries were quickly dissolved song by song. Every break out was well designed and included and I quickly realised, that I made a big deal out of the style of music being in this olden day based film, for nothing.

Jackman proves again that he is a musical gun, and though the entire cast can be gashed over individually, we need to pay attention more to Zac Efron who plays eager young protégé, Phillip Carlyle. Unlike most of the characters, Carlyle is a fictional one and was only created for the interracial love story between him and another fictional character, trapeze star, Anne Wheeler (Zendaya). When you hear of Efron in a film, all you think about are roles he plays as a heartthrob, the arrogant alpha male, or his roles in sleazy comedies. But, he’s really matured here and stepping up his role choices. He’s also such a better singer and dancer than what he is given credit for.

The Greatest Showman came with plenty of ups and downs to keep the audience interested. It was easy to follow and didn’t stop entertaining right through. Like I already mentioned, the world needed this film right now because in a world of negativity, we need to remember to stick together and embrace everyone for who they are and not what they are.

With emotional themes, incredible voices and spectacular vision, The Greatest Showman is an easy 4 out of 5.