I have never been a big fan of "I Love Lucy" and the reason I mention this is that I am sure I'm not alone. But despite not being a fan, I still enjoyed and appreciated "Being the Ricardos".
The story is less a bio-pic and more a snippet giving you a look at what it was like behind the scenes at the show. And, as a result, it gives you an appreciation for the real life Lucy and Desi. In the film, Lucy is shown as an incredibly driven lady...with great instincts about TV. And, you see that Desi is more than just a band leader and actor...he was instrumental, like Lucy, in running the show and making sure it was perfect for 1950s audiences. This I found very fascinating...as well as a few other snippets involving William Frawley, Vivian Vance as well as the writers, producer and director....it was all very interesting...like you're a fly on the wall watching it all go down in front of you.
So is this a great film? No. I thought in a few ways it could have been a lot better. I have no idea WHAT they did to Nicole Kidman to make her look the way she did, but her face looked like plastic. I would have MUCH preferred they let her look like herself instead of trying (and failing) to make her look like Lucy. I also didn't love how the film bounced back and forth in time. It was like the movie was trying too hard to do too much. But despite these minor complaints, I did find it worth seeing...and with an interesting message about feminism before they even used the term 'feminism'.
By the way, it is NOT an important thing at all, but during the episodes involving Lucy's pregnancy, they were filmed in the original apartment set...not the later one that you see in the film. No biggie...but a mistake. I assume they probably just did it this way because the newer set LOOKED nicer and bigger...and would probably look better on film.
The story is less a bio-pic and more a snippet giving you a look at what it was like behind the scenes at the show. And, as a result, it gives you an appreciation for the real life Lucy and Desi. In the film, Lucy is shown as an incredibly driven lady...with great instincts about TV. And, you see that Desi is more than just a band leader and actor...he was instrumental, like Lucy, in running the show and making sure it was perfect for 1950s audiences. This I found very fascinating...as well as a few other snippets involving William Frawley, Vivian Vance as well as the writers, producer and director....it was all very interesting...like you're a fly on the wall watching it all go down in front of you.
So is this a great film? No. I thought in a few ways it could have been a lot better. I have no idea WHAT they did to Nicole Kidman to make her look the way she did, but her face looked like plastic. I would have MUCH preferred they let her look like herself instead of trying (and failing) to make her look like Lucy. I also didn't love how the film bounced back and forth in time. It was like the movie was trying too hard to do too much. But despite these minor complaints, I did find it worth seeing...and with an interesting message about feminism before they even used the term 'feminism'.
By the way, it is NOT an important thing at all, but during the episodes involving Lucy's pregnancy, they were filmed in the original apartment set...not the later one that you see in the film. No biggie...but a mistake. I assume they probably just did it this way because the newer set LOOKED nicer and bigger...and would probably look better on film.