Review: ‘Dear Evan Hansen’s faithfulness is a disservice

When living with a mental illness, it’s easy to feel as if you’re alone. Consequently, knowing you’re not alone can make all the difference. In spite of the many campaigns trying to change historically predominant views, mental health issues are still widely stigmatized and difficult to openly share. However, certain unexpected events can bring people together and give them cause to let someone in so they’re no longer carrying the full weight of their secret. In Dear Evan Hansen, teens are united by the untimely death of a classmate.

Evan Hansen (Ben Platt) doesn’t have any friends — just a family friend, which doesn’t really count. One day, fellow outcast, Connor (Colton Ryan), offers to sign his cast so they can both appear to have friends… before violently exploding and running off with a very personal note Evan wrote to himself for his therapist. When Connor takes his own life with nothing but the note on his person, everyone mistakes it as a sign of a covert friendship. When Evan can’t find the nerve to tell Connor’s family the truth, the lie snowballs into a beacon of hope for everyone with an internet connection. But nothing built on a falsehood can endure forever and the longer it goes on, the more deeply people will be hurt when the truth inevitably comes out.

The film’s most blatant problem is its lead actor. It’s understandable filmmakers wanted to share the charm of the original Broadway musical with a broader audience. However, believing the only way to do that was by casting the now inappropriately aged Platt to reprise the character he last made popular on stage in 2017 was a mistake. The movie opens with Evan looking in the mirror to give himself a pep talk — and in that moment, it’s clear a 28-year-old man is looking back at the audience, not an adolescent boy. From that point on, it’s difficult to become immersed in this “teenager’s” life as he struggles with his decision and the undue attention that accompanies it. There is a long history of adults playing younger characters, but it’s very important they look the part or risk the narrative losing credibility.

Second, at the core of this heartfelt narrative is an avoidable lie that will eventually cause immense pain to a mourning family. Although the story is presented as a young man filled with anxiety embracing a sense of belonging he’s never before experienced, it’s difficult to overlook how he came to that feeling. The betrayal of his ongoing deception grows with every passing day as the falsehood multiplies, absorbing more people and widening its path of destruction. It’s wonderful these characters find solace in each other by sharing their feelings of depression and other issues, but the taint of the untruth could unravel that progress for many. While this premise doesn’t differ from the award-winning musical, it may not sit well with all viewers, particularly when the mismatched lead actor prevents them from becoming fully engrossed in the movie.

That said, the songs unsurprisingly transfer very well. The cast have lovely voices that convey all the emotions their troubled characters experience throughout the story, from loneliness to grief. The story’s anthem, “You Will Be Found,” is played to excellent and powerful effect. The soundtrack is a series of incredibly passionate lyrics expressed fervently by the likes of Kaitlyn Dever, Amy Adams, Danny Pino, Julianne Moore, Amandla Stenberg, Nik Dodani, and many others. The music is the heart of the narrative and that hasn’t changed in this adaptation.

In the end, this movie produces a conflicting viewing experience as its core elements are unappealing, but there are many enjoyable performances.

Director: Stephen Chbosky
Starring: Ben Platt, Kaitlyn Dever and Amy Adams