Better Man is an upcoming biopic about Robbie Williams, where he’s being portrayed by a, uh, CGI… monkey?
It’s very rare that I find a creative decision to be completely and utterly baffling. Even if something’s a bit odd I’ll usually go ‘well, I get why they did that.’ This isn’t a difficult thing to do, creative decisions can be rationalised, even when bad. But, dear reader, from the very depths of my soul, I cannot even begin to understand what the hell is going on with Better Man. Here’s the basics: it’s a biopic about pop singer Robbie Williams. OK, that part I can deal with, I’m sure as someone who was in a band as big as Take That has some stories to tell. He’s in it too, seemingly as a narrator, which is maybe ethically sketchy, but whatever. Except, the fictionalised version of him is literally a CGI monkey. Ah. What?
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“I know what you’re thinking,” Williams himself narrates to us in the trailer. “What’s with the monkey? I’m Robbie Williams. I’m one of the biggest pop stars in the world. But I’ve always seen myself a little less evolved.” Right, so, that seems to be the reasoning behind the whole monkey thing, it’s just, is this really how you want to present yourself to the world? I mean, I’ll give it to them that the CGI does look close in quality to the modern Planet of the Apes films, and yet even still I’m struggling to wrap my head around it.
An official logline explains: “Better Man is based on the true story of the meteoric rise, dramatic fall, and remarkable resurgence of British pop superstar Robbie Williams, one of the greatest entertainers of all time… It follows Robbie’s journey from childhood, to being the youngest member of chart-topping boyband Take That, through to his unparalleled achievements as a record-breaking solo artist – all the while confronting the challenges that stratospheric fame and success can bring.” Sounds a little self-congratulatory in places, but that’s fame isn’t it?
On directing duties is Michael Gracey (The Greatest Showman), with Jonno Davies playing the younger version of Williams. The cast is rounded off by some faces that should be familiar to many Brits, like Stever Pemberton (Doctor Who, Benidorm) and Alison Steadman (Gavin and Stacey). Oh, and if you’re wondering, the rest of the Take That boys are in there somewhere too, but I’m assuming they won’t also be monkeys.
Better Man is out December 25 in the US select theatres, December 26 in the UK.
