"In the Heights" pure joy for movie musical lovers and dreamers

In the Heights (2021)

Before remixing American history with rap and casting non-white actors as the Founding Fathers in “Hamilton,” Lin-Manuel Miranda created the music and lyrics for a little musical that celebrated his New York roots. Based on a book by Quiara Alegría Hudes (who adapts for the screen here), “In the Heights” is a big-screen treatment of the 2008 Broadway sensation of the same name, and it is 143 minutes of pure joy. There’s really no director better suited to helm this material than Jon M. Chu, who can handle the choreography in a “Step Up” movie and a splashy, big-hearted ensemble party like “Crazy Rich Asians.” Chu knows how to make a stage musical feel cinematic and alive, and “In the Heights” is as vibrant, dazzling, and homegrown as one should be. 

Set in the predominantly Latinx New York neighborhood of Washington Heights, this slice-of-life is framed as a story about the meaning of a sueñito (“little dream”) being told to four children at a Santa Domingo beach bar. Played with swagger, charisma, and heart-on-sleeve glee, Anthony Ramos (2020’s “Hamilton”) takes the lead with a star-making turn as bodega owner Usnavi, our narrator. After his parents died, he’s been raised by “Abuela” Claudia (Olga Merediz), Usnavi's surrogate grandmother and the matriarch of the entire block. Usnavi owns his parents’ store and runs it with younger cousin Sonny (Gregory Diaz IV), but dreams of running a bar by the sea in his home country, the Dominican Republic. He struggles with working up the courage to ask out his longtime crush, tough-as-nails beauty shop worker Vanessa (Melissa Barrera), who dreams of leaving the barrio, getting a downtown apartment she can’t really afford and becoming a fashion designer. The “first one to get out,” Nina (Leslie Grace) returns home from Stanford to see her father, car service owner Kevin Rosario (Jimmy Smits), but hasn’t told him yet that she’s actually dropped out. Usnavi’s best friend Benny (Corey Hawkins), who works as a dispatcher at Nina’s father’s company, also still carries a torch for Nina. In the three days leading up to and following a neighborhood blackout, everything changes. 

“In the Heights” is an electric, crowd-pleasing summer treat. The specificity of its cultural representation makes the story feel all the more universal, and the grounded and the fantastical blend seamlessly. Capturing the rhythm, flavor, and summer heat in an urban milieu as well as Spike Lee’s “Do the Right Thing,” director Chu kicks off with his film's titular musical number (a melodic knockout) to bang the bongo in celebration of community. And that's just the beginning of cinematographer Alice Brooks, editor Myron Kerstein, and choreographer Christopher Scott working in concert to make an exhilarating marriage of resplendent image and rat-a-tat sound. At the public pool, where everyone makes hypothetical plans about what they would do with a winning $96,000 lottery ticket bought at Usnavi’s bodega, “96,000” is an eye-popping, hummable show-stopper of goosebump-inducing harmony and spectacular staging. In a gravity-defying flight of fancy not unlike Fred Astaire in "Royal Wedding," “When the Sun Goes Down” is a magical duet between Nina and Jenny on the fire escape that extends on the walls of the apartment building. Another energetic highlight: “No Me Diga,” complete with animated bewigged mannequins, is sung by the larger-than-life Daniela (Daphne Rubin-Vega) and her workers in her salon upon Nina’s homecoming.

The enormously appealing ensemble of fresh talent is comprised of triple threats who can sing, dance, and act, made doubly impressive when the lyrics are so rapid-fire yet delivered passionately and clearly. Musical artist Leslie Grace, not only stunning and a true vocal talent, has a natural warmth and engaging screen presence as Nina; the isolation she felt at Stanford and the at-home feeling in Washington Heights are also emotionally resonant, as conveyed in Nina's solo "Breathe." Corey Hawkins is magnetic as Benny, and Melissa Barrera is positively eye-catching with that special spark as Vanessa; besides Barrera proving her mettle when belting out Vanessa's anthem "It Won't Be Long Now," Vanessa feels like a fully realized character rather than just a surly, playing-hard-to-get love interest who can strut well. A touching Olga Merediz reprises her role of Abuela Claudia, which she originated on stage, and seals the deal that she’s the heart of the story when her lovely, poignant solo performance “Paciencia y Fe” recounts her immigrant experience from Cuba. Broadway veteran Daphne Rubin-Vega can’t help but command every scene she’s in, along with Stephanie Beatriz and Dascha Polanco; they come as a package deal as fiery, gossipy salon owner Daniela, girlfriend Carla, and stylist friend Cuca. Lin-Manuel Miranda, who played Usnavi on Broadway, even has a peripheral part as the Piraqua Guy, competing with Mr. Softie as he tries making a living selling flavored shaved ice.

Endlessly entertaining, earnest, and joyous, “In the Heights” is an exuberant dream come true for movie musical lovers (there will be "Hamilton" Easter eggs) and everyone who ever had a dream. With two romances and a lottery ticket amidst the glue of community, cultural identity, and the effects of gentrification, the film is less overcrowded than it would seem when taken as a tapestry of characters, particularly when the energy is so giddy and infectious. If you don’t feel like singing and dancing, where is your sense of community?

Grade: A - 

Warner Bros. is releasing “In the Heights” (143 min.) in theaters and on HBO Max on June 11, 2021.