Thursday, June 17, 2021 • The BuLLeTIn
GO! MAGAZINE • PAGE 17
MOVIES & SHOWTIMES
bendbulletin.com/gowatch
‘In The Heights’ lifts spirits
BY MAKENZIE WHITTLE • The Bulletin
“I
n the Heights” feels like every summer movie should: It’s bright and colorful, with peppy songs, a strong heart and a powerful message at its core. But
it’s not perfect. The film is rich in its details, letting each character’s story have ample (sometimes too much) time to develop in front of our eyes, and is
filled with powerful performances shining a light on the Latino community and their stories in a beautiful way.
The story comes from Broadway, and the
musical earned its lyricist and star, Lin-Man-
uel Miranda, his first of many Tony Awards
(the play won four Tonys in 2008). The film
version is tackled by the original book writer,
Quiara Alegria Hudes, who does an impres-
sive job adapting for the screen.
Set in the Manhattan neighborhood
of Washington Heights, a predominantly
tight-knit Latin community, and specifi-
cally around the corner bodega run by the
“almost-thirty” Usnavi (Anthony Ramos)
and his cousin, Sunny (Gregory Diaz IV).
Usnavi dreams of returning to the Domini-
can Republic, which he and his parents left
when Usnavi was young, and reopening El
Suenito, his father’s bar. He even goes so far
as to purchase the place, which had been
pretty much ruined by a hurricane.
Meanwhile, Vanessa (Melissa Barrera)
longs to leave Washington Heights for a
fancy downtown address and follow her
dreams of fashion design. Usnavi crushes
hard on her but lacks the skills neces-
sary to ask her out, as indicated by his best
friend and taxi dispatcher, Benny (Corey
Hawkins).
Benny has a thing for his boss’s daughter,
Nina (Leslie Grace), who has come home
from Stanford, the first of her family to go
to college and who carries the weight of the
dreams of the entire neighborhood on her
success there.
Hearing that Nina has come home,
Abuela Claudia (Olga Merediz), a woman
who had no children of her own and there-
fore adopted the entire neighborhood, de-
cides to host a dinner in her honor.
All of this is laid out in the first few min-
utes of the film, along with the idea that
gentrification is slowly eating away at the
neighborhood with a new, expensive dry
cleaner moving in, the beauty salon moving
out and with an overarching feeling of the
More Information
“In the Heights”
143 minutes
Rated PG-13 for some language and
suggestive references
Macall Polay/Warner Bros.
Anthony Ramos, center left, and Melissa Barrera in a scene from “In The Heights” (2021).
community at large being ignored or forgot-
ten about.
With dialogue straddling both English
and Spanish seamlessly, the heartfelt stories
are threaded through immigrant families
and first-generation children who feel torn
between their own dreams and that of their
community. Firmly, the film is about dream-
ers.
Hudes and director Jon M. Chu weave the
tapestry of these stories together through
its smart writing and thoughtful characters,
but not everything gels, mostly with how
many stories there are within the one film.
Because each one is given the time to de-
velop the film feels long at times, most no-
tably parts of the Nina/Benny story and the
piragua vendor (played by Miranda).
Where the film really hits is with its over-
all story and performances. Mostly told
through song in Miranda’s now-signature
hip-hop/Broadway mash-up style, there are
only a few moments of straight dialogue
from the characters. The choreography also
flows well on-screen, with dashes of magical
realism thrown in.
There are strong performances through-
out, but it’s Merediz’s portrayal of Abuela
Claudia, which she originated on Broadway,
that hits you in the heart. Her gentleness,
kindness and ultimate swan song paint the
strongest picture of what immigrant women
like her and her mother must endure in or-
der to survive.
“In The Heights” shines brightly on the
Latino community and the struggles and
dreams within it. It tells their story effec-
tively, though not without a few missteps,
but it is a story for anyone with a dream.
e
Reporter: 541-383-0304, mwhittle@bendbulletin.com
IN THE BALANCE OF COMPETING HARMS - WE SHALL PREVAIL
541-788-5858
905 SW Rimrock Way Suite 100A
Nolan Town Square • Redmond, OR
ladiesofl eadusa@gmail.com
Sharon Preston