‘Better Man’

Robbie Williams’ Life Thru A (new) Lens

When the first teaser trailer for Better Man proudly announced itself as a film “from the visionary director of The Greatest Showman” many took to the internet to voice their concerns, as Michael Gracey’s feature film debut has been often criticised by its vehement opponents. What undoubtedly caught the attention of everyone who watched that trailer, however, was the fact that the film seemed to be offering a look into the life of Robbie Williams as you’ve never seen him before… as a monkey.

Robbie Williams has long been one of the world's biggest pop stars but as someone who is self proclaimed as seeing themselves as “a little less evolved”, Williams is portrayed in the film by Jonno Davies in motion capture as a chimpanzee. A bold swing in an otherwise tried and true subgenre of familiar formulas, this creative decision was one that immediately made Better Man stand out in the crowd of its contemporaries.

Having your film's subject be so heavily involved in the production process, with Williams being on board as an executive producer, could have been a recipe for disaster. The biopic subgenre has a strong history of films that gloss over the thornier aspects of their characters, as they come off as far more self-serving than perhaps intended. Williams, in tandem with debut screenwriters Simon Gleeson, Oliver Cole and co-writer/Director Michael Gracey however, do not shy away from explicitly showing the troubles of the star's past, instead anchoring much of the film's dramatic arc on exactly that.

Set over the course of roughly three decades, the film follows Robbie Williams’ journey from childhood through to his success as the youngest star of Take That; and into his monolithic solo career, which saw him become one of the most successful stars in British music history. While showcasing the incredible talent of Williams as a star, the film also confronts the challenges that stratospheric fame can put one through. 

Better Man, in its opening moments, quickly introduces Robbie Williams the monkey, as well as Robbie Williams the voice, as the star himself navigates the audience through the film via voice over. Taken from interviews that co-writer/Director Michael Gracey and Williams shared during the course of a year and a half, this narration serves as the guiding light through the often energised whirlwind of Williams’ life as it unfolds on screen.

Kicking off in his home town of Stoke-on-Trent, audiences are introduced to a young boy (monkey) spending time playing football with his mates and performing in school plays. The film early on establishes Williams’ relationship with his Mum, Dad and Nan as they live their lives in the British city. While the young monkey sits on the couch watching TV with his Nan, licking salt and vinegar chips in the process, his Mum is seen running around getting housework done as his Dad stumbles home from work only to quickly change the channel to watch Frank Sinatra’s mesmerizing performance of My Way. Here Gracey establishes Robbie Williams' love for the likes of Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr and Dean Martin, at the hands of his Dad who tells him that they are the real stars, purely because everyone loves them. As the two sing together in the living room, the young monkey accidentally knocks off the TV antenna, killing the broadcast and causing his Dad to lash out.

With a strained relationship, his Dad is constantly searching for validation from others more so than caring about his own family, and the man shortly leaves his family behind. The young monkey works through the pain of his father leaving him in the first musical number of the film. Reworking and repurposing the hit song ‘Feel’, from the 2002 album Escapology, Gracey crafts a scene that not only propels the film through a young Robbie Williams heartbreak but also utilises the songs recognisable lyrics to translate the emotional challenge that the young monkey navigates through into his teen years.

This becomes the catalyst for the film that follows; as big, bold, bright marquee letters take up the entire screen broadcasting the film's title to audiences' eyes. Better Man.

With a large portion of the film dedicated to Robbie Williams early life and career, the audience gets to spend a lot of time with the foul mouthed joker that he becomes in his youth. As he struggles with his grades in school, Williams eyes are set on stardom, in hopes that with fame he too can find the validation he seeks. Soon enough, he gets just that as he successfully auditions for Nigel Martin-Smith, who is forming a new boy band; Take That. Being able to escape the dregs of school, Williams is starry eyed and excited at the prospects of being able to follow his dreams.

To showcase his early days in Take That; Gracey takes one of Robbie Williams’ more well known tracks, Rock DJ, and utilises its propulsive beat and lyrics to showcase the bands rise to fame in an electrifying one take musical number down Regent Street in London. This sequence, although utilising Robbie Williams own voice for the song, is where Jonno Davies physicality as the star gets to truly shine. While audiences become accustomed to seeing a monkey in the place of Williams early on in the film, it's difficult to look past just how amazing of a performer Davies is in this role.

It’s in these musical numbers that the film shines brightest, taking a series of Williams’ biggest hits and using them to drive the film's narrative along. Using songs like ‘She’s The One’ to showcase the meeting and early relationship between Robbie Williams and former romantic partner Nicole Appleton; as well as ‘Come Undone’ and ‘Angels’ to touch on more sombre notes of Williams’ life like his falling out with his Take That band mates or losing a loved one, these songs are the driving force of Robbie Williams’ life as it unfolds throughout the film.

Performing it all, bar the singing, is Jonno Davies whose performance manages to shine through the facade of the CGI monkey that takes up the screen for the film's two plus hour runtime. Being able to perform as a real life personality through such a bold creative choice is a feat that shouldn’t go unnoticed. Whether through his high energy singing and dancing or his more dramatic beats behind the eyes of Robbie Williams’ monkey, Jonno Davies manages to translate every emotional beat in an often powerful way.

This goes hand in hand with the film's brilliant visual effects work that brings Davies’ motion capture work to life. While the central conceit of the film of Robbie Williams being performed by a chimpanzee is one that could be seen as dismissive, it’s instead one of a clear vision and manages to bring through a real sense of sincerity in bringing Williams’ story to the big screen.

While Michael Gracey sometimes leans too far into the fantasy of the film, with the ‘She’s The One’ sequence feeling too entrenched in visual effects and added flair, the film's direction succeeds in pulling off the gritty and grungy feel that is necessary to showcase some of the darker periods that plagued Williams’ life.

Better Man, like most modern biopics, has every chance to gloss over Robbie Williams’ struggles with drugs and alcohol but with Williams being the self-deprecating man that he is, that is thankfully not the case. While much of the film focuses on Williams’ struggles with substance abuse and mental health challenges, Gracey and Williams approach them all with a real sense of acceptance and culpability that allows the star's story to have an emotional payoff that feels genuine and authentic.

With moments of mental struggles such as anxiety and imposter syndrome, shown through incredibly unique ways like the ‘Let Me Entertain You’ sequence; through to the films emotional climax where we get to see Robbie Williams take responsibility for his life as he belts the titular song, ‘Better Man’, the film manages to tug at audiences heart strings, even through the drug fueled chaos of Williams’ solo career.

While much of Williams’ rise as a solo artist can feel rushed compared to the rest of the film’s story beats, it doesn’t take away from his personal journey. Focussing less on the star's fame and instead placing the man himself under the microscope, Gracey feels far more interested in unpacking why Williams is the way he is and less interested in being historically accurate and recreating famous moments beat for beat. This allows the film to flow through the usual biopic moments while still managing to stand boldly apart from other films in this subgenre, much like Robbie Williams himself.

Michael Gracey has applied to Better Man the familiar biopic formula and has managed to put enough of a spin on it to give audiences one of the most entertaining films of 2024. Jonno Davies’ performance is a stunning one that somehow manages to allow all of Robbie Williams’ hamminess and vulnerability shine through his chimpanzee facade. The film’s musical numbers take Williams’ hits and rework them into these powerhouse moments that drive the film towards its emotional climax, which is one that packs a powerful punch. Better Man is crazy, electric, energetic and manages to showcase this mega star's life through a new lens and is one that fans and newcomers alike are sure to find something to take away from. 

Better Man is in Australian cinemas on December 26!