Postechian’s Pick: The Greatest Showman
Postechian’s Pick: The Greatest Showman
  • Reporter Yang Seo-Yeon
  • 승인 2023.01.06 23:58
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▲The Greatest Showman (2017)
▲The Greatest Showman (2017)

 The Greatest Showman (2017) is the original musical film inspired by the story of Barnum, the founder of the Barnum and Bailey Circus who fascinated the world with his stage. 

 Synopsis
 The main character Barnum grew up in a poor family but was a very passionate boy. As he fell in love with a girl named Charity, he worked all sorts of hard jobs to raise money and  marry her. Finally, he became the head of a family with two children and a wife. However, he lost his job when a trade ship that was supposed to go to China sank. He borrowed a huge amount of money to buy a museum but even this failed. To save the museum, he began to gather people with unusual bodies. He started a circus with a woman with a beard on her chin, a 25-year-old man who was only 25 inches tall, and so on. Surprisingly, many people were willing to buy expensive tickets to see this unusual show.
 Barnum  decided to target the upper class for his unusual show. Thus, he began promoting the circus with Carlyle as his partner, who was established within the upper class. Barnum was invited by Queen Elizabeth to visit England and there he met Jenny Lind, who was called the Nightingale of Sweden. He fell in love with her singing and signed her to a casting contract. After Jenny Lind's first performance in New York successfully ended, Barnum treated the members of his circus differently and caused a great deal of friction and problems. Tasting success, he forgot what was most precious. He was losing his true happiness as he pursued fame and money. His family waited for him to return but he did not. While continuing to perform without him, his audiences gradually decreased, and the profits fell to rock bottom. He lost all his property when the museum burned down due to a disturbance caused by the audience. During this time, Carlyle became a partner to help start the circus again by investing his savings. Barnum handed everything over to Carlyle and returned to his family. 

 Review
 When I first saw it, I felt it was simply an interesting musical. The songs in the movie sometimes create an exciting atmosphere as if I were in a real circus and I could empathize with their sadness. I loved the songs in the movie so much that I often listen to them when I have time. But it is not just a musical with a great soundtrack. This movie is sending us an important message.
 The message in this movie is that social discrimination, racism, and prejudices are important, but even more important is that we are equal beings, and everyone  deserves a chance to love and be happy. It makes me realize once again that what is more precious than success and honor is family and loved ones. Among the songs in the movie, there is a lyric like this, "I am brave I am bruised I am who I'm meant to be, this is me", was sung by members of the circus who were discriminated against for having a unique body. For me, the lyrics were very touching. The meaning of a lyric I thought of is: “I'm the one you blame and swear at. No matter how bruised I am, I am just a brave me.” It was inspiring, and I could watch the movie with interest while listening to the song.
 I hope we all remember this one word when we are discriminated against or when we hear someone's criticism: “This is me.”