In desperate need of a noble cause to revive their public images and bounce back, self-centred Broadway thespians, Dee Dee Allen and Barry Glickman, the narcissistic stars of Eleanor, The Eleanor Roosevelt Story, have come up with a foolproof plan to earn some positive publicity. As a result, to help Emma, a bright-eyed high-school student who has recently come out of the closet, make her dream come true, the flamboyant celebrity activists and their fellow struggling actors, ... (Full plot summary below)
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In desperate need of a noble cause to revive their public images and bounce back, self-centred Broadway thespians, Dee Dee Allen and Barry Glickman, the narcissistic stars of Eleanor, The Eleanor Roosevelt Story, have come up with a foolproof plan to earn some positive publicity. As a result, to help Emma, a bright-eyed high-school student who has recently come out of the closet, make her dream come true, the flamboyant celebrity activists and their fellow struggling actors, Angie Dickinson and Trent Oliver, head to the small town of Edgewater, Indiana, to right a wrong. But, Emma only wants to take her girlfriend to the prom, and intolerance stands in the way of acceptance and happiness. Can the bold quartet give Emma the prom she deserves?
Leave your thoughts about The Prom.
| USA TodayBrian TruittThe Prom is an exuberant love letter to Broadway’s “Let’s put on a show!” ethos that will earworm you till the new year and proves how a great musical – armed with a heartfelt story – unites like nothing else can. |
| ABCPeter TraversAre you ready to party? Here's the musical blast we need right now to cure our pandemic blues. Corny? You bet. But an all-star cast, led by Streep, Kidman and Corden, wears its unruly heart on its sleeve as Ryan’s Murphy’s plea for tolerance sings, dances and laughs our troubles away. |
| VarietyOwen GleibermanThe movie has a universalist spirit that’s wired into its very form. It turns doing the right thing into a fizzy and elating high-camp showbiz high. |
| IndieWireJude DryWith a star-studded cast, dazzling design, and thrilling dance numbers, The Prom is the best of what Murphy can offer Hollywood — a taste of the past with its eyes on the future. |
| The GuardianPeter BradshawThe Prom is as corny as you like, and there is hardly a plot turn, transition or song-cue that can’t be guessed well in advance; but it’s so goofy that you just have to enjoy it, and there are some very funny lines. |
| New York PostJohnny OleksinskiThe material, filled with peppy pop songs, is admittedly funnier than Murphy and his cast make it. Barry (played on Broadway by the brilliant Brooks Ashmanskas) was a riot onstage, but Corden’s bland performance is generically kind, fey and mostly joke-less. Someone like Nathan Lane would’ve made a meal of every line. That said, the story is more moving here than it was at the theater, which comes as a surprise. |
| Washington PostPeter MarksLovers of musicals will groove on the shamelessness of its footlights worship. |
| CNNBrian LowryThe Prom is indeed a demonstration of star power at work, but it's mostly a valentine to theater -- at a time when theaters are closed -- coupled with an overt message about LGBTQ acceptance and inclusion. All of that comes wrapped in a big neon bow, a joyous holiday gift for fans of musical theater, made by people who love the medium every bit as much as they do. |
| Chicago Sun-TimesRichard RoeperStreep kills each of her numbers (no surprise there), while Jo Ellen Pellman more than holds her own with the big-name stars and gives the story its heart and smile with her empathetic portrayal of Emma. |
| The Globe and Mail (Toronto)Barry HertzMurphy’s blindingly bright, consistently energetic, never-ever-ever-still approach works more often than it doesn’t. Think of Murphy’s own Glee but with approximately 30 times the budget and star power. |
