Watched on Netflix

Recently, there was somehow no way around Lin-Manuel Miranda. Whether it's the phenomenon "Hamilton", which also celebrated success as a filmed version, or the actual film adaptation of "In the Heights", even non-musical fans are now familiar with the name. Then there are his appearances as an actor, such as in "Mary Poppins Returns". So it was really only a matter of time before the busy US-American would also try his hand at directing. Now he has one in the form of the Netflix film "Tick, Tick... Boom!", which - how could it be otherwise? - is once again set in the musical genre.

This time it's not about material written by Miranda himself. Instead, it is an adaptation of an already existing stage musical. It is not surprising that he liked it and wanted to turn it into a film version. Not only is "Tick, Tick... Boom!" a musical with catchy songs that can be beautifully staged. The film is also a film about musicals. This gives Miranda the opportunity to deal with his work on a meta-level, so to speak. There are notable cameo appearances from the industry, plus innuendos and references that are clearly built in for a very affine and savvy musical audience and are unlikely to be recognised by most.

Above all, however, the musical should be of interest because it is the semi-autobiographical legacy of Jonathan Larson. He became world famous with "Rent": The story about a group of young artists in New York who can no longer pay their rent became one of the longest-running musicals on Broadway. With "Tick, Tick... Boom!" he portrayed in fictionalised form what it was like to have to fight for this dream for a long time. How difficult it was to continue to believe in the project, even though hardly anyone wanted to give it any more hope. The film is thus also a kind of declaration of love for creative work and creative processes, for the unconditional will to create something, no matter how great the obstacles.

Miranda finds interesting images for this. Again and again, he removes the boundary between his protagonist's life and his world of thought. The fact that in musicals people start singing and dancing in the middle of a sentence is of course part of it. In such works, the whole world becomes its own stage to be conquered. "Tick, Tick... Boom!", however, manages to combine everything a little more beautifully. On the one hand, Jonathan lives in his own world where he doesn't notice much of what's going on outside - a tunnel vision that allows him to hold on to his dream despite all odds. At the same time, we see how everything that happens around him becomes a source of inspiration. The world itself becomes a musical.

This is not entirely devoid of pathos and gushing emotions, especially towards the end when the story becomes very tragic. At many points, however, "Tick, Tick... Boom!" is actually rousing and shows what staging potential films have as musicals. That they have completely different means that are worth using. At the same time, the film is very human, beyond the little tricks and gimmicks. Above all, Andrew Garfield inspires as an oblivious and at the same time egocentric dreamer who would do anything for his musical. The actor, who rightly is Oscar nominated for his performance, fills his role with a stunning energy and displays a surprisingly great vocal talent, for which alone it would be worthwhile to take a look and listen in here.