‘Better Man’ Review — Robbie Williams monkey movie is the best musical of the year

A review of the musical biopic, in theaters December 25th, 2024

There’s a solid chance that two musicals are going to make the Best Picture list at this year’s Oscars. Wicked is very good and is a massive smash, so I wouldn’t be too upset about the Academy Awards recognizing that. Emilia Pérez, on the other hand, is atrocious, and the sooner we all forget about it, the better.

You’re not likely to see Joshua Oppenheimer’s The End on the Best Picture list. It’s aggressively non-commercial, and it’s slow and extremely bleak. I loved it, though; I’m always here for a big swing, so I was predisposed to love a 2.5 hour musical that takes place after the apocalypse and stars Tilda Swinton, George Mackay, and Michael Shannon.

Another movie that probably won’t make the cut — but would absolutely deserve to — is Better Man, the new musical biopic of British pop superstar Robbie Williams. It’s the year’s best movie musical, without question. This is a biopic with a twist: “Robbie Williams” is here played by a CGI monkey, Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes-style.