Andrés tied wrote a song about it. deplorably, he never did play it for Marta before they parted in their youth, and he died merely as a chance to right that wrong last presented itself. It ‘s up to Vivo, then, to ensure his acquaintance ‘s story ends as it should have by ferrying the precious page of lyrics and sheet music from Havana to Miami, where Marta is preparing for her final performance. There ‘s just one problem : Vivo may sing and dance and speak to us, the audience, but to the perch of the world he ‘s good an adorably chittering potto. That ‘s where the aforesaid child enters the mental picture : Gabi ( Simo ) is a feisty and rhythmically challenged Gen Z spitfire who happens to be moving with her widow ma from Cuba to Florida. She ‘s besides Andrés ‘ great-niece .
Who tells your story? Lin-Manuel Miranda can’t get away from that question.
The two may not understand each other ‘s words, but they make beautiful music together, literally, when circumstances lead to them teaming up on a mission to reach Marta in Miami. Gabi has her own deeply personal joining to music and loss driving her forward, and she ‘s besides well equipped to help the potto get by in a human world. The touching report of their shared travel — badly, keep tissues handy — comes alive around Miranda ‘s music. Fans of his earlier sour will instantaneously recognize the rapid-fire lyricism and heady coalition of Latin cycle, hip-hop beats, and pulsing EDM with the soaring melodious spectacle of musical theater. A issue like “ Keep the Beat, ” one of the few cuts from the soundtrack released ahead of the movie, is vintage Miranda. It might be sonically out of position in his other works that explored similar themes, but song ‘s overall structure and melodious makeup intelligibly bears Miranda ‘s touch. On the distant other end of the spectrum is “ My own Drum, ” a soundtrack standout and absolute banger that fuses the bouncing march isthmus energy evocative of Beyoncé ‘s Homecoming: The Live Album with the far-out individuality that defines Gabi as a fictional character. This one is Simo ‘s performance, top to bottom, and while the young actor contributes enough of emotion during song-free scenes, “ My own Drum ” gives her melodious talents a home to shine. There is much to be said, besides, for the handwriting from Quiara Alegría Hudes based on a history by High School Musical writer Peter Barsocchini. It ‘s a perfective team-up for Miranda, since Hudes besides wrote the book for In the Heights on stage. Vivo ‘s heart-wrenching emotional beats hit vitamin a hard as they do because the frame is filled with some contagiously lovable characters. The ones not named Vivo or Gabi are largely relegated to subplots, but even bit players fill the history with rich texture that goes beyond giving the starring duet something to play off of. Everyone ‘s got layers that are peeled away as they play their part in this quest to see Andrés ‘ song delivered. Like a adept musical, those modest contributions are linear, leading to a culminate that crescendos in a beautiful display of emotion and music.
There ‘s besides batch of humor. This is, without a doubt, a funny movie. Gabi and Vivo alone ever communicate directly through song, but there ‘s adequate of a association between them for a patter to develop outside the melodious numbers. That leaves tons of space for hilarious one-liners, frequently uttered by a at a loss Vivo who just cannot with Gabi ‘s boundless energy and unshakeable joie de vivre .
The moving story of Andrés (González) and Marta’s (Estefan) lost love is the beating heart of Vivo’s journey.
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Their adventures, both together and aside, besides open the door to a supporting cast that by and large exists to generate laughs. We have Dancarino and Valentina ( Brian Tyree Henry and Nicole Byer ), a pair of doofy, mutually bereft spoonbills who end up in a awkward and fumble yet unalterably odoriferous courtship. We besides get to spend brief, entertaining stretches with Leslie David Baker and Michael Rooker who play a crabbed bus driver and a noise-hating Everglades python, respectively. The trio of Katie Lowes, Olivia Trujillo, and Lidya Jewett — though it ‘s Lowes who gets the heaviest lift — is besides a bright piece of Vivo ‘s drollery. The three lend their voices to the mildly antagonistic Sand Dollar Troop, a Girl Scouts-like gang of environmentally conscious cookie peddlers. Gabi wants no part of that gang despite the urgings of her beget Rosa ( Zoe Saldana ). But when the young girls catch a glimpse of Vivo, a rainforest-native mammal that definitely has no commercial enterprise running loosen in south Florida, they set out to disrupt whatever Gabi ‘s plans might be and “ rescue ” the little potto. The Sand Dollar Troop ‘s discharge through the movie is n’t quite that straightforward, but suffice to say they bring a lot of laughs — and unexpected twists — to this travel. very, I ca n’t say adequate about how thoroughly enjoyable it is to spend 100 minutes marveling at Vivo ‘s gorgeous and vibrantly colorful worldly concern. Do n’t bother scrutinizing the animation for Pixar comparisons. This is a beautiful movie in its own right, and the art focus serves the characters and the report perfectly. ( A few more of those juicy 2D sequences would ‘ve been decent, though. )
For fans of Miranda ‘s work specially, this is a particular creation. It about feels of a piece with In the Heights, given the close proximity of each movie ‘s free. Vivo fits neatly into a growing body of work for this world-renowned dramatist, music-maker, and entertainer. Miranda himself may not be able to stop pondering what a bequest looks like and how it ‘s shaped, but in Vivo, with the help oneself of Hudes, Barsocchini, and enough of other talents, he ‘s far cementing a bequest of his own. Vivo begins streaming on Netflix Friday.
