Should have started this thread weeks ago, when I first saw it.
The 1970 version, with the original Broadway cast, is in my top 100, so I’m a tough audience for this. But IMO, this version is awesome! If I’ve got it right, this is the film version of a recent revival, with this same cast. So they’re on their game, the same way the original cast was.
Jim Parsons and Zachary Quinto were spot on. Parsons was arguably a better Michael than the guy who originated the role. Robin de Jesus, playing Emory, was hilarious during the first half, when he’s comic relief, but dropped off a bit in the second, more serious, half. In the 1970 film, Emory takes a long time to tell about his high school crush, and it’s heartbreaking. This version felt rushed through, and wasn’t nearly as affecting. Like hearing someone talk about a bad date, rather than a rejection they’ve never gotten over.
This version also brought a couple of new things to the mix. I thought the guys playing Hank and Larry were better at conveying that Hank is just too old and set in his ways for Larry. And Michael Washington, playing Bernard, made a really interesting choice. During most of the film, he sounds pretty much like the other, white, characters. But when he’s calling the woman who used to (still is?) his mother’s employer, he code-switches to a meek Stepin Fetchit lilt.
And speaking of, there were a couple of PC-driven changes. “Since [Bernard] was a pickaninny” was changed to “Since he was a little black-eyed pea.” And Michael uses the N-word once; it can’t be changed because of the context, but they covered it by having someone say “C’mon!”. Almost drowned out on the soundtrack, but visible in the closed-captioning.
So yeah, a very worthy remake. (I’d forgotten, until this, what a hash the BBC made of The Dresser a few years ago.) Cope with some ice, have some cracked crab, and settle in to watch.