Richard Crouse

SYNOPSIS: “Better Man,” the biopic of Take That singer-turned-solo superstar Robbie Williams is a sex, drugs and British Pop story given an audacious treatment by “The Greatest Showman” director Michael Gracey. A surreal mix of “Behind the Music” and “Planet of the Apes,” it is a raw portrayal of the singer’s vulnerabilities and foibles with a startling gimmick.

CAST: Robbie Williams, Jonno Davies, Steve Pemberton, Alison Steadman. Co-written, co-produced and directed by Michael Gracey.

REVIEW: You can’t talk about “Better Man” without first acknowledging the 500-pound monkey in the room. Or, in this case, in the film’s leading role.

The role of Robbie Williams, international pop star, is played as a chimp in a motion-capture performance by Jonno Davies. It is never directly referred to in the film, although there is some talk about how Williams, who first found fame as a young teen, was somehow stunted by the experience.

In other words, he is not as evolved as his peers.

It’s a stretch, and it is very much a gimmick, but it works. You will believe a chimp can sing and dance, and more importantly, you’ll soon forget the movie’s monkey business and be drawn in by the bombastic, unflinching portrayal of the ups and downs of Williams’s life.

From the fairly straightforward Bob Dylan biography “A Complete Unknown” to the fanciful “Piece by Piece,” the life story of Pharrell Williams, rendered completely in LEGO, 2024 has been an eventful year for music biopics. No matter what the execution, most follow a rags-to-riches trajectory, tarted up with good tunes and some sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll speedbumps along the way to a happy, triumphant ending.

“Better Man” is no different. The story beats are familiar, but it is in its execution that Michael Gracey succeeds in creating something not only entertaining, but memorable. It’s a wild ride, one that paints outside the lines, while still providing a complete portrait.

Bruce Springsteen once said, “You don’t get into this business because you had a normal childhood.” Those words echo throughout “Better Man” as we learn of Williams’s estrangement from his show biz obsessed father, his insecurities and battles with his worst enemy—himself. Amid all the glitz is a very real story of someone who discovered that money and fame can change the bank account and get you a better table at a fancy restaurant but isn’t a remedy for everything.

On some levels “Better Man” is a standard biography, but what separates it from other music bios, like the Wikipedia page style of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” is the raw honesty it displays toward its subject. Williams is a superstar whose life has been tabloid fodder for as long as he’s been in the public eye but there is no whitewashing of his foibles here. Director Gracey may sprinkle a bit of glitter over them, but he never shies away from the grit that makes Williams’s story interesting.

The chimp, loads of bad language, excessive drug use and song and dance numbers bring great energy and entertain the eye, but it’s “Better Man’s” raw, emotional that sticks.