zoë rose bryant’s review published on Letterboxd:
Rewatched this with my family last night, anxious to see how it held up outside of that absolutely electric AFI premiere, and I’m happy to say that not only does it still SLAP, but god damn, Garfield just BODIED this performance. In my alternate universe, he’d be sweeping the Best Actor awards. No one else comes close. It’s the rare “transformative” part that doesn’t feel phony or artificial - Garfield summons Larson’s entire spirit and channels that into his characterization, making it all the more moving and mesmerizing.
(Also, this truly does hit different without Sondheim 😔)