Ahead of its Boxing Day release, the trailer has been released of Robbie Williams biopic, Better Man.
For those expecting to see the Stoke singer in all his glory, be prepared for something a little “less evolved.”
Director Michael Gracey, who directed The Greatest Showman and produced Rocketman, has turned Williams into a CGI monkey.
He’s played by Jonno Davies, using motion capture technology, and the film takes us from Williams’ childhood, through Take That, his solo career and drug problems.
It’s been shown at a number of film festivals to positive reviews, probably best summed up by Variety’s Peter Debruge, who wrote:
“Against all odds, that gimmick [CGI monkey] works, distinguishing the project from so many other cookie-cutter pop-star hagiographies. If you want to fawn over this boy-band backup singer-turned-solo superstar for four hours, check out the “Robbie Williams” doc series on Netflix.
“But if you want to see a chimp doing coke with Oasis, or getting a fateful hand job in front of manager Nigel Martin Smith (Damon Herriman), this is your movie.”
