A Few Thoughts on Cyrano and Hamilton

*Spoilers.*

I’ve been thinking a lot about Cyrano since I watched it, and in considering the various angles of the story, I found myself drawing parallels with Hamilton numerous times. This was unexpected, but I leaned into it and started teasing out more of these thoughts. They may wind up being mostly unconnected ramblings, but I wanted to write some of them down and see what comes out.

Despite being very different characters in execution, there are plenty of similarities between Cyrano and Hamilton. Obviously, both place great value on their way with words. Cyrano is a wit and poet who always puts his best word forward, and Hamilton “[writes] like [he’s] running out of time,” turning to the strength of his words whenever he’s in trouble. They’re both accomplished men who project a lot of confidence but also have deep insecurities that they endeavor to mask. Cyrano throws clever insults at himself before others have the chance to, and Hamilton’s forceful energy is a way of plowing past his doubts. Both have a great deal of pride, which can get them into trouble. Cyrano’s love for Roxanne is all-consuming, but he’s so convinced he’ll be rejected that he never makes a move, and Hamilton’s drive to prove himself to those who look down on him burns a lot of bridges, including in his family.

But for all of Cyrano’s Hamilton-like qualities, when it comes to Roxanne, his reluctance to act is more reminiscent of Burr. It’s not the same—Burr’s “wait for it” approach is a calculated stance to gain the most advantage by not committing to anything that’s not a sure thing—but it’s striking that Cyrano, who’s so bold in everything, holds back at the one thing that matters most to him. Le Bret tells him, “You forget, I’ve seen you in battle. You’re a fighter to the end. But in love, you’ve raised the white flag.”

Then, there’s Roxanne, who reminds me of both Angelica and Eliza in different ways. Her nimble mind and hunger for poetry bears a resemblance to Angelica’s intellectual sharpness, as is the clever way she navigates the uncertainties of life as a single woman. She knows how to respond to the Duke to keep him on the hook, playing the game to get what she wants without being trapped. But while Angelica is pragmatic enough to realize all the reasons why she can’t just marry for love, giving up the man she wants to secure stability for her family and happiness for her sister, Roxanne is also a romantic who refuses to marry someone she doesn’t love. Instead, she falls head over heels for a poor soldier and risks her situation with the Duke to write to him and arrange secret meetings; outwardly, she’s bolder than Eliza, but this leading with her heart is definitely a more Eliza-like attribute.

This final point might feel like a stretch, but it was the one that led into all my other Hamilton comparisons, so here we go. The subtle, dreamlike quality of Cyrano’s musical elements is really effective to me, the way the characters softly slide in and out of song, the way the ensemble can suddenly slip into dance without ever acknowledging that they’re part of a musical number. Because the music is fueled largely by Cyrano and Roxanne’s words, by their poetic thoughts, it struck me that their words are bringing the musical around them into being. And that made me think of Eliza talking about Hamilton’s letters to her in “Burn”: “You and your words flooded my senses. / Your sentences left me defenseless. / You built me palaces out of paragraphs, / You built cathedrals.” More directly, this could simply be a parallel for how Roxanne is affected by the letters Cyrano writes her on Christian’s behalf, but I also really like the idea that both of them are creating the musical with their poetry.

Cyrano (2021, PG-13)

Like Nope, this was a film I checked on every few months after its theatrical release, waiting to see when it popped up on one of the streaming services I have. I was excited, if a little trepidatious, to see that it had finally turned up on Amazon Prime. I knew Peter Dinklage was going to kill it as a romantic lead and Joe Wright's direction was going to be gorgeous, but the fact that it was a musical made me a bit nervous; I wasn’t sure how well this adaptation would carry it off.

Cyrano de Bergerac is a bold man who lives by his wit and his words. A soldier and a poet, he uses his sword and his repartee in equal measure to attack those who would spurn him for his appearance. He’s self-assured in everything except his desperate love for his childhood friend Roxanne, who he’s convinced could never feel the same way about him. When Cyrano learns that Roxanne has herself fallen in love at first sight with Christian, a young recruit in his regiment, he takes up a duty to help the lad, who lacks the romantic way with words that Roxanne longs for. Through Christian, Cyrano pours out all the loving words for Roxanne that he's been afraid to tell her.

On the whole, I loved it. The script is beautiful, brimming with witty, soulful, and moving gems of dialogue. Cyrano and Roxanne may be the heavy hitters in that department, but plenty of the other characters get in on it as well. As expected, the film looks stunning, from the costumes to the direction to the exquisite use of light. As for the score, I admit that not many of the songs stood out that much during a first watch, but I feel like I'd find more character/individuality in them on further listens. I really like, though, that the songs aren't exactly "production" numbers. Instead, characters just softly start singing, sometimes with dialogue or bits of other scenes interspersed, and they end almost as quickly as they begin, with no self-conscious applause breaks. It gives the characters' songs a more intimate feel, even as the ensemble sometimes breaks into more cinematic choreography behind them.

While I’m plenty familiar with the story of Cyrano de Bergerac through cultural osmosis (and a Wishbone episode, of course!), this was actually the first full adaptation I’d seen of it. And I love the different themes that the film brings out. The way Cyrano’s insecurities and his pride get tangled up together to his detriment. The way it’s pointed out to him more than once that he can’t have a very high opinion of his “perfect” woman if he thinks she couldn’t look past his appearance to see his soul. The way Christian is also a casualty of this whole convoluted exchange—a perfectly decent if uncomplicated guy, it’s not his fault that Roxanne projects all her hopes for a romantic ideal onto him. And the “love triangle,” such as it is, is a compelling one due to the depth of feeling on all three sides. In particular, because Cyrano never sees himself as a genuine contender for Roxanne’s affections, he can’t fully see Christian as a rival, and it’s clear that he likes Christian even as the entire situation is tearing him up inside.

Haley Bennett is excellent as Roxanne. She's bright and witty and over-idealizes romance, but we also see the ways she's a survivor and has had to use her cleverness to make her way in the world, and I love the easy flow of wordplay between her and Cyrano in their scenes together. Bennet is also the strongest singer in the film, displaying beautiful control during the softer songs and moving power in the scenes where Roxanne is able to let loose. Kelvin Harrison Jr. makes for a sweet Christian: equal parts clumsily romantic, endearingly funny, and earnestly caring. Meanwhile, playing the selfish, shady Duke De Guiche is of course no stretch for Ben Mendehlson, but he does well with it. I hadn't realized he was in this movie, so it was fun to go, "Who is that?" and finally recognize him by his voice underneath the makeup and the wig. The film also features a brief appearance from Anjana Vasan (Amina from We Are Lady Parts!)

Finally, Peter Dinklage. What can I say? He is just sooooooo good in this. I love Cyrano's dashing, swaggering entrance, the easy confidence he projects as he simultaneously duels and composes a poem, proving he can insult himself far more capably than any sneering noble can. To go from such charm and self-assurance to his absolute conviction that Roxanne could never love him seems paradoxical, especially given how charismatic and handsome Dinklage is, but in the context of the setting and the story, you understand why. Despite the cavalier tone he takes in public about his "monstrous" appearance, we see how deeply he's internalized all those jabs and insults to never once consider that kind, intelligent Roxanne, who he thinks is perfect, could ever love him. An early highlight of the film is the scene where Roxanne tells Cyrano she’s in love with Christian. When she makes her “confession,” every single emotion slides over Dinklage's face as Cyrano finds himself frightfully daring to hope and then gets those hopes dashed in an instant.

No, he's not much of a singer, but his performance during the songs works for me. His quieter, husky performance is fitting for the character, because when Cyrano sings, it’s giving voice to the words he'd never dared to say aloud. It might be an odd comparison, but I’m reminded a little of Diego Luna's singing in The Book of Life—while neither Luna nor Dinklage are great singers, they both embody their characters so well that the acting and the emotions are enough to get them through it. (And I definitely warmed up to Luna's singing on repeat listens, so I imagine the same will be true of Dinklage.)

Warnings

Violence, sensuality, language (including ableist insults,) drinking, and thematic elements.