“Better Man”, the biopic dedicated to Robbie Williams, shakes up all the codes of the genre. Between moments of grace and descents into hell, the film retraces the singer’s eventful life with a daring idea: replacing Robbie with a computer-generated monkey.
“Better Man” does not just tell the story of Robbie Williams, in 2 hours 15 minutes, the film directly explores the most significant and darkest moments in the life of the British artist: a difficult childhood marked by absence of his father, his glorious debut in the boy band Take That, his battles with alcohol and drug addiction, and his meteoric rise as a solo artist.
The big surprise of “Better Man”? Robbie Williams does not appear in person on screen. In its place: a computer-generated monkey. Yes, you read that correctly. With his eyes and his voice, the monkey becomes the perfect and daring incarnation of the singer. “Naturally, if I had to be represented by an animal, I would choose the monkey. I am not a lion, nor a bear, nor a kangaroo. I am an insolent, primal monkey, subject to my impulses and ultimately not that evolved. This is who I am”explains the singer at the microphone of Stéphane Boudsocq
This artistic choice also reflects the artist’s criticism of classic biopics, which he often considers predictable and monotonous. With this film, Robbie Williams wanted to break the codes and remind us that he was never afraid to think outside the box, even if it meant shocking or destabilizing.
-A career full of ups, downs… and records
“Better Man” also shows how Robbie Williams’ life has not been a smooth river. Within Take That, he felt out of place. When he launched his solo career, success was not immediate. It took time, several singles, and a lot of perseverance before the public followed him.
And yet, the figures speak for themselves: more than 85 million albums sold, iconic hits like Rock DJ, and legendary performances, like the one in 2003 where he brought together 375,000 spectators in an English stadium.
But the biopic hides nothing: today, Robbie Williams’ notoriety has declined somewhat. The artist accepts it with lucidity, and even a certain relief: “I’m happy today. At the time, that wasn’t the case, I was almost crazy. I don’t know if we ever recover 100% from such an illness, but I know revenge that a good part of my being escaped”.
Robbie Williams singer film cinema Biopic
