In The Heights is playing in theaters and the director caught some of the audience reactions on film. Lin-Manuel Miranda approached Crazy Rich Asians filmmaker Jon Chu for this musical journey. HBO Max also has the movie streaming at home, but a lot of people made the effort to get out and see it. The reviews are pouring in from all over the place. But, the initial read seems to be complimenting the visual style of In The Heights along with the musical numbers. It’s not hard to see why people are really enjoying themselves. Musicals are not a genre that get a chance to showcase itself as much anymore. Last year, when Hamilton made its big debut on Disney+, it was a big moment for the service as people flocked to see Lin-Manuel Miranda’s work. Warner Bros. is hoping for more of the same.
The director wrote on Twitter, “I snuck into some theaters tonight to see how audiences are reacting… and OH MY GAWD the time has come for REAL!!! The movies are back!!! This energy was insannnnneeeeee. You must see it to believe it!!! #InTheHeightsMovie”
I snuck into some theaters tonight to see how audiences are reacting… and OH MY GAWD the time has come for REAL!!! The movies are back!!! This energy was insannnnneeeeee. You must see it to believe it!!! #InTheHeightsMovie ???????????????????????????????????????????????????????? pic.twitter.com/CQeDNiP8Kb
— Jon M. Chu (@jonmchu) June 11, 2021
In a previous conversation with the Associated Press, Chu talked about his favorite moment from the movie.
“‘Paciencia y Fe’ is a showstopper in my mind. When (actor Olga Merediz) sang it at our table read, everyone was in tears. And yet at the same time that’s just the easiest number to cut in a studio meeting. It costs a lot of money to show the struggle of this woman. Like, oh that’s ‘Feed the Birds,’ that’s when everybody goes to the bathroom.,” Chu said.
“When you talk about how your parents came over from another country, it’s like oh (no big deal) but that’s like the most rock star (expletive) ever. That deserves a giant musical number! That deserves the biggest painting,” he went on “And yet we’re a few inches from her face the whole time. We rarely back away. We purposely did not make it about the dancers. It’s about her and the dancers all around her. Everybody understood: Don’t take it away from her, give it to her. We had to fight for that every inch of the way.”
Did you watch In The Heights this weekend? Let us know down in the comments below!