Mark Reviews Movies: ON BROADWAY (2021)

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Review by Mark Dujsik | September 2, 2021

The ebbs and flows of the history of the Great White Way are presented in On Broadway. Given its nostalgic dive into the past and its litany of famous and/or esteemed interview subjects, director Oren Jacoby's documentary begins with an air of romanticism, as actors wax poetic about the marvels of live theater and behind-the-scenes folks recall the artistic triumphs of the old days.

The Broadway of then, though, was much different than it was during the final season before the ongoing pandemic. The once-dangerous streets of Times Square have been cleaned and given a modern-day polish. The shows are numerous, and the most successful ones can bring in a billion dollars in a matter of years. All of the interview subjects here love that Broadway endures, but they also have some qualms. As one interviewee puts it, "Where are the hookers and rats?"

Jacoby's film, then, is romantic about the art of theater (with a few exceptions, when it comes to the musical boom from the spectacles of the 1980s), but it's far more critical of the business side that keeps the physical theaters running. Everyone's more or less pragmatic about theaters needing to pay the rent and bills. Today, though, the potential profits from selling high-priced tickets to tourists, merchandising shows, and creating musicals that make people comfortable might have transformed Broadway into a safe and almost exclusively commercial enterprise. It can't last, as either a financial venture or an artistic one.

Jacoby's communication of history—not only of the theaters and shows (This aspect, thankfully, doesn't just become a highlight reel), but also of the geographic Broadway area—is assembled well, thoughtfully, and with plenty of great archival footage (The film's occasional stops to a current play in rehearsal, though, offer little—likely because the show didn't succeed). Directors, producers, and respected actors (such as Helen Mirren, Ian McKellen, Christine Baranski, Hugh Jackman, and John Lithgow), as well as James Corden, offer anecdotes and insights that only those in the know and with decades of experience can provide.

Broadway was always about making some kind of money, but it lost its way when theater owners and big business discovered just how much money they could make. It's a simple and mostly obvious thesis, but On Broadway makes its arguments with a bit of romanticism, yes, but also with some much-needed skepticism.

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