Jersey Boys

Jersey Boys, 2014 (Oh, What A Fright)

The story of The Four Seasons is a stellar one, which is one of the reasons why the Tony award-winning musical Jersey Boys was such a pleasant surprise and why the film version is ultimately engaging, despite its frighteningly lackluster production.

The other reason is, of course, the music. In both cases, Frankie Valli is played by talented sound-alike John Lloyd Young. And he’s great.

When director Clint Eastwood just lets the music play, it works. But the full film looks dark, is filled with stereotypes and at times, very flat. Why make a movie version when the sets look like a stage and the characters talk to camera?

Simply put: I can fully recommend the play, but I can only give this a mild recommendation.

Award potential: Nothing.

The ten buck review: Stay for the credits and it’s worth ten bucks.