George M. Cohan Tonight (2022) Film Review
We live in times where a film like George M. Cohan Tonight can be made and can be observed. Even if it’s only set out to compel a very small niche, we have to recognize the impact of a work of art that’s sparked by passion but maintained by the importance of what it depicts. George M. Cohan was America’s musical comedy pioneer, a visionary who demanded too much from himself and conquered America’s theater scene while at it.
If you’re going to make a biography, what better than using the man himself and his work?
Well, not a biography. Something much more risky and oriented towards the public that can actually appreciate the work.
George M. Cohan Tonight is a one-man show performed by Jon Peterson who has taken Cohan’s songs and work, and with the help of Chip Defaa, has come up with a songbook to be performed in the same manner Cohan liked to tell his stories. This is a musical play from start to beginning, and it tells the story of Broadway’s most important member.
But the film isn’t a simplistic adaptation of a play. The use of editing enhances the experience and allows Peterson and Defaa to dig deeper and show what they can do with a clever medium. Even if the one-man show aesthetic is conserved until the ending, you can’t help but acknowledge the further step cinema allows. It makes George M. Cohan Tonight much better.
However, this never feels like a trick. Fortunately, Peterson stays in control all the time and does a fantastic job at portraying Cohan as a mortal man with a vision. But Cohan isn’t the only one present on the stage. Peterson looks to the sides and includes Cohan’s peers as essential to the final work of Cohan, who went from having to dream to owning several theaters in Broadway. The progression, the growth, and the development of the character are only possible with a natural performance as Peterson’s.
Amidst the laughs, the dancing and the tapping, George M. Cohan Tonight lands sometimes. It’s a complete retelling of what made Cohan what he was, and this includes tragedy as well. Again Peterson changes his appearance with minimal expressions and surprises the audience by staying true to the human side of a performer that wasn’t always jolly or gay.
Peterson is, of course, a natural. His experience isn’t a match for what he’s able to do with Cohan’s body of work and the ability to show the legend under the standard of a Broadway musical. From singing to dancing, from laughing to crying, it’s impossible to imagine someone else taking on this hard to engage performance.
George M. Cohan Tonight isn’t the biography you’d expect. But it’s important enough to understand the legacy of George M. Cohan. Sometimes learning is possible with different methods and tools. This one is fun and frantic, and frankly, it sounds great. So, why not give yourself a chance to understand history through a very distinct fashion?
