Robbie Williams “Better Man” Is A Disastrous Flop

The TJCS crew discuss Robbie Williams biopic that stars a digital monkey flopping hard at the box office.

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[andrewgillon]

John, a little Google search would have enlightened you about Robbie Williams before covering A Better Man. You also would have seen that over the years Robbie has referred to himself as a performing monkey for the music business and at times in his life has felt un-evolved. I think we should be supporting movies that use novel approaches ( gimmicks to you ) of tackling subject matter and presenting it in a fresh way. This certainly did that. A wise person once told me to check something out before assuming the worst and writing it off, to give everything a chance. Maybe you should adopt that outlook especially since your career focuses solely on movie and TV entertainment.

[alexbg]

Box office shouldn't be a deciding factor of whether you see a movie or not. I get Robbie Williams isn't big in the US, but I think they underestimate how big he is in other countries. When I was growing up in the late 90s/early 00s UK, you couldn't go a day without hearing or seeing Robbie Williams somewhere.

[isaacbeeby]

Fun fact: I am technically in this movie. So they filmed pretty much the entirety of this movie in Melbourne, Victoria which is where I live and a couple of years ago when I went to see Robbie live in concert at Rod Laver Arena, they were actually filming scenes for the movie before he actually came out on stage. So during the scene where the young members of Take that are performing on stage and you see a shot of the entire crowd, one of those lights way in the back of the crowd... IS ME!

[That_guy_antony_ware]

Dude it’s actually a very good movie. You even referenced this in the reviews. The fact that it’s a flop in the box office just shows people’s unwillingness to open their minds. You really should see it.

[richkee]

Why would you just go on the internet and announce you have no appetite for whimsy?

I hope Better Man becomes a sleeper hit just to spite all the people writing it off without seeing it.

[asyme]

He's a weird one. He's... huge... in the UK. It's hard to describe just how big a star he was in the 90s and 00s. Like... male Britney levels of fame. British people love a 'lad' - a cheeky chappy, bit rude, bit into football, working-class, kind of a mess. And he played that role to perfection. It's a very UK template which I can understand Americans not embracing.

This film doing well would be like a film about a Yankee player doing gangbusters outside the US.

[King_Mac]

I'm Black and from America I have no idea who Robbie Williams is, every time one of those ad/trailers would pop up I thought it was just a movie about a made up person whose a struggling artist then turns into a monkey and gets famous as a result. I didn't realize this was based on a real person until I went on twitter and saw people talking about the film flopping. Paramount is NUTZ for spending $25m on the local distribution rights.

[dxjjw]

People will turn out in the millions for sequel/prequel slop but turn their noses up at a genuinely daring and original movie like this. No wonder the industry is dying

[thecinematicbandicoot]

So much for "We WaNt OrIgInAl MoViEs!"

[vickster]

I'm getting really sick of Americans mocking this film and the person it's about just because they aren't aware of who he is. How about go and see it and learn about a talented music artist? How can you judge it without seeing it? The pride so many have at saying, oh I've no idea who that is, I'm not going and seeming amused it's not being successful, is really unnecessary. it's like because he isn't known in the USA, Americans want it to flop so their lack of familiarity with him is justified. Maybe look up the footage of his Knebworth concerts. Bit disappointed to see the John Campea crew joining this mocking band waggon without actually watching it.

[JamesTalksMovies]

This movie is FANTASTIC guys. Go and see it if y’all have not already. It will probably be in my top 15 or so of the year when the years all said and done.

[GloInTheDark]

I don’t wanna hear another person whine about not getting original movies from Hollywood.

[stevenlewis]

It opened in the UK a few weeks back. It's a really good film, and the ape works surprisingly well. Definitely a worthwhile watch.

[JustinFeyereisen]

People forget that The Greatest Showman only opened to $9 Million and was one of the few films to grow week over week.

[sem]

Robbie Williams was massive in Europe and around the world except America, he’s relatively unknown there

[linkjourney]

This has cult film status written all over it

[AussieWarningFan]

Better than Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocket Man and Walk the Line combined.

[masonboulton]

Americans just need to stop being so uptight about not knowing who Robbie Williams is. The whole point of the film is for you to learn who he’s is. For instance, I couldn’t name a Bob Dylan song but I’m still willing to watch A Complete Unknown.

[AshleyBrookeCohen]

I don’t like that everyone in the video was hating on a movie that no one has seen. It is a beautiful concept to have him as a monkey. It’s not a gimmick, it really does serve a purpose to convey the fantastical nature of the story. Better Man has some of the most beautiful musical sequences that I’ve seen in a long time. And it is such an accurate portrayal of what it’s like living with depression and imposter syndrome. It’s a shame that people want more original movies and no many people are willing to give things a chance. I’ve never heard of Robbie Williams before this, but I’m glad this movie was made so I know him now

[Stratton]

This movie was really great. I’m so sad to see such a colossal box office failure come from what is truly a very entertaining and emotional movie