A needlessly thorough roast of Dear Evan Hansen (2021)

I don’t just roast I incinerate.
Click the title under which you posted Evan Hansen’s speech to the internet:
Doctors hate him! High school boy looks 45 / jennyenicholson
POV the lead singer of the memorial didn’t show so the drummer has to sing instead and his voice is incredible / jennyusername
Stupid Orchard Kickstarter / jennynicholson
Top 10 memorial speech FAILS compilation / spider_jewel
Weeping falsetto ASMR / progamerjenny
Parts 2, 8, and 10 do not contain triggering content but might be confusing out of context. Except Part 2 that one stands on its own legs.
Chapters:
00:00:00 Intro
00:00:38 Part 1: The Story
00:02:46 Part 2: Ben Platt wants an oscar but he is 45 years old
00:11:44 Part 3: Mommy why is the scary man singing
00:19:49 Part 4: Sincerely, Me
00:24:25 Part 5: The romance with the sister
00:28:34 Part 6: His best friend d*ed… you won’t believe what he did next!
00:32:01 Part 7: The stupid Kickstarter
00:36:33 Part 8: The Jared character has no point and makes no sense
00:39:51 Part 9: The stuff I liked
00:41:57 Part 10: The editing
00:44:48 Part 11: The lie
00:52:18 Part 12: Is Evan the bad guy
01:01:16 Part 13: Nothing happens
01:08:28 Part 14: Trees

[@trtx84]

Carry yourself with the confidence of Julianne Moore singing "truck."

[@abbywolffe4114]

ₜᵣᵤcₖ

[@kleerude]

Trrrrrrruk

[@b3z3jm3nny]

16:59 for a time stamp of the truck lol

[@Halberddent]

You've been hit by, you've been struck by, truck

[@burntcookie0073]

tRUCK

[@katbarbera3527]

“actually i’m neurodivergent and a minor”- 30 year old Evan Hansen

[@cam4636]

That's it, that's the show

[@OliverHeikkinen]

This is so fucking funny

[@fawnalove7569]

Underrated comment

[@SeymourDisapproves]

@@cinderellaskeleton6720 who tf are you talking about

[@couldbequinn9487]

reminds me of that scene in Bojack where Vance Waggoner's publicist says "he's just a 49 year old kid he's still learning!"

[@WhatAmySays]

Evan always looks like he's trying to hide the fact that he's been bitten by a zombie

[@CNWhatImSaiyan]

Hence the cast…🤔

[@Crypted112]

he kinda looks like he's turning into a zombie with the weird puffed up kinda pale face, sweat, bulging facial muscles, and strange hunched over lurching walk

[@Mirrored33]

@@Crypted112Totally

[@everlyting7587]

I laughed out loud thank you

[@P-nk-m-na]

Dawn of the Dear Evan Hansen

[@john091077]

Must be a hard life being in the 20th grade.

[@wiseauserious8750]

Hahaha

[@nickit7655]

This made me laugh out loud 😂

[@BootsMcGee3]

28:56 listen to Somewhere that’s green from little shop, then listen to part of your world from little mermaid

[@bennyrenny6613]

@@nickit7655I’m k I CD G G G h fed

[@iwakeupandboomimarat]

hes the ultimate super senior

[@whoisxenon]

Ben Platt saying no one else could possibly play Evan is made 1000% funnier when you remember that his fiancé also played Evan Hansen on Broadway

[@karak962]

W H A T

[@spookyho5994]

WHAt-

[@Evelynn_of_Runeterra]

I can not believe someone like Ben Platt could be in a health relationship

[@fireafire]

LMAO YES THAT'S TRUE

[@steverogers7601]

Christ almighty. I liked him before but this is just not respectable lol

[@MacheteSquad]

Regarding Ben Platt's t-rex arm mannerisms- It's pretty clear that the reason why he does tiny gestures because Ben Platt is used to the stage giving him full range of movement, and in the film adaptation he is stuck in my tiny tv. If he gestures too widely he'll hit the side of the screen.

[@xxratsrcutexx3494]

That seems reasonable lol

[@lilyfinallyinthesun]

this actually made me lol

[@Draqua]

Free him

[@valentinahendrick9540]

Or someone in the scene with him, Considering there’s also more space on stage for more people

[@theekatspajamas]

@@valentinahendrick9540 no, stuck in tv

[@mia-tr4shm4n50]

The most culturally important thing to come out of the Dear Evan Hansen franchise was Rupaul thinking the main character's name is Dear.

[@Sarah-qx4vz]

LOL I have no idea what the context of this is but that cracks me up

[@siena4235]

WHAT DDSDGHIK

[@mcwyman7928]

@Eduardo De Lara Season 10, I forget which episode. Ru was talking to Miz Cracker about opening up or being vulnerable or something.

[@chocolateeclair9879]

Ben Platt who plays Dear in Dear Evan Hansen

[@hannabennett819]

absolutely

[@gillygull]

I know this video is a year old at this point, but I want you to know that if an orchard “closes”, they have to rip all the trees out. Because the trees could become a hotbed of disease and pests if left unattended, they have to be removed to protect other farms in the area. Due to the nightmare cost of that, orchards generally don’t close, they just get sold to other farmers. Source: Apple farmers in the family

[@bekss6307]

Thank you for the information

[@octogonSmuggler]

That's actually kinda interesting...

[@timothymclean]

So what I'm hearing is that the orchard is another area where the musical makes no sense. Neat! I mean, the information about orchards is neat.

[@anniehuckaby2649]

To add to this: Whenever an orchard truly closes it is typically because the land has become unusable either because of poor management or extremely bad cases of pests like nematodes or some fungi, such as armillaria (this actually ruined a local orchard industry) that can wipe out entire stands and then live in the soil for many years after. This would make it likely impossible to reopen the orchard, even for $100,000. Source: I'm getting a degree in forest pathology.

[@celisewillis]

Thanks for the info, really interesting how a huge acreage of a single crop can actually threaten others in the area. Hope our horrendous monoculture farming practices go extinct soon. Permaculture is the future!

[@RHBR01]

"Maybe Evan's not a nice boy. Maybe he's just a quiet boy." Seeeeriously. A lot of people have trouble understanding that "quiet" or "shy" or "introverted" does not mean "nice". Just because someone's not loud and flashy about being a jerk doesn't mean they're not one.

[@colt9836]

Media has not been kind to "popular" kids. There's a reason why Legally Blonde was so groundbreaking and still stands as iconic. El's friends are probably my favorite part of the movie because even tho they are ditsy, "superficial" bimbos they are unapologetically and wholeheartedly supportive of El in everything she does. They even come to her first court case.

[@appalachiabrauchfrau]

@@colt9836 fr, I was a social chameleon in high school and hung out with the band geeks and football/cheer team. The popular kids didn't pay much mind to being negative, but every gd time I sat with my band mates they'd be under the impression that a cheerleader was talking shit about them or a jock was silently judging them. They bullied these people in response to the ASSUMPTION of bullying. When I told them that the after game parties were just hang outs where they made chocolate chip pancakes and played soul caliber they would NOT believe me. Media has brainwashed quiet kids into victimizing themselves lol.

[@owenleal]

​@@colt9836fr, most popular kids I knew in school was honestly quite decent. The stereotype of the "bitchy mean girl" or the "meathead jock bully" is either an American thing or just a straight up projection of someone who was bullied or was jealous of certain people in school.

[@ochahap]

⁠@@owenlealusually the reason someone is popular is because they’re pleasant to be around lol

[@alexisgrondin5701]

​@@colt9836 amazingly, Legally Blonde was also produced by Ben Platt's father

[@jonathanneil5901]

In One Direction’s defence, Jenny, they did *try* to share the best song ever with us. They think it went ‘oh, oh, oh’. They think it went ‘yeah, yeah, yeah’ They think it went ‘oooh’.

[@thomask.98]

;D

[@Stevonicus]

I like to think Tenacious D's "Tribute" is about the same song as One Direction's song.

[@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick]

@@Stevonicus You stole my joke, you beautiful bastard.

[@LateCambrian]

Just to be clear, the best song ever would NOT go Oh Oh Oh or Yeah Yeah Yeah….or Ooh

[@QuikVidGuy]

@@LateCambrian there are a lot of people who think She Loves You is the best song ever I've heard that... at least twice...

[@retiinas]

“Stop manipulating a grieving family to feed your insecurities” “um, im literally neurodivergent and a minor?”

[@StarWarsomania]

Um... literally neither of those are reasons for this kind of sociopathic behavior.

[@dumbasssupreme4022]

​@@StarWarsomania ITS A MEME

[@grantus_pax]

"The fuck you are, you're clearly a middle-aged man!"

[@bigasspockets]

This feels like heather saying “I’m a student” in crazy ex girlfriend 😄

[@Sehon13Ultd]

StarWarsomania wooooooooooooooooosh

[@ilovemusic55100]

This was the first Jenny video I'd seen and I didn't know she dressed thematically with her videos and I thought this was just how she looks

[@maleahlock]

🤣

[@limegreenelevator]

This was my first Jenny video as well. Didn't make the thematic outfit connection until about an hour in.

[@stuckbetweenfandoms5138]

same 😭

[@combeferret]

this is so fucking funny omg

[@alannamichellebova]

Same 🤪🤪🤪🫣🤣

[@thomasguycott]

"Truck" is such an unmelodic word, I can't imagine deciding to write a whole song around it.

[@stellabelikiewicz1523]

It really is! Kind of the opposite of “watermelon” 😁

[@eyesofthecervino3366]

Even worse, writing a whole song that isn't a continuation of, "You've been hit by/You've been struck by/TRUCK!"

[@iso-kun1644]

two trucks by lemon demon 😎

[@wiseauserious8750]

Truth

[@michaelgoldstein8516]

Almost the entire genre of modern country music would disagree with you.

[@dolores111]

When Evan says he wants depressed kids to “go out and climb trees” am i the only one who feels that its a pretty morbid thing to say when he has just tried to kill himself by jumping out of a tree?

[@jkfecke]

Yeah, that's...that's definitely a choice.

[@Alice-burrice]

thank you!! I was thinking that the whole time like, did they forget about it, or what??

[@ChumblesMumbles]

Which was a totally unnecessary and problematic revelation in the first place - the point of the cast on his arm isn't how he broke his arm - it's to show that it has no signatures - he has no friends. That's the entire point of his cast. Trying to shoe-horn in at the end an explanation for how he broke his arm serves no purpose but to muddle the story.

[@lunesdoesstuffiguess3527]

“go out and touch grass” is what he basically said

[@skeetsmcgrew3282]

@@Char-mv3fc hey, grass is still cool if you're depressed. I like grass

[@heckyeah1004]

In Ben Platt's defense, 45 is really young in tree years.

[@katbarbera3527]

underrated comment

[@morriewalnuts6683]

Oh my god that's so good

[@colleenrawson8477]

😂😂😂

[@jessicab2409]

😂😂

[@Goobiusgoober]

😭😭😭 YOURE SO BAD BAHAHAHA

[@Melody-td5hd]

I feel like Alana doesn't get enough shit for posting Connor's "suicide note" online. That's a fucking horrible and disgusting thing for someone to do. And she did it for MONEY. No one in this story is worse than Evan (and Jared, of course). But Alana slid into a close second place after she did that.

[@colt9836]

But the trees 🥺

[@osmanyousif7849]

The ironic thing is, I kind of prefer Alana in the stage musical. Because similar to Evan, she’s using Connor’s situation for her own self-glorification, but the stage show knows this.

[@creategenius719]

@@osmanyousif7849 Also in the stage version, her posting the note was more of a knee-jerk reaction and her desperation to raise the money for the orchard was more palpable. In the film, she sits on it for hours and then posts it. She had hours to decide it was a bad idea and posted it anyway.

[@creategenius719]

@@osmanyousif7849 The film takes a lot of the grit out of the secondary characters. In the stage version Jared is selling "RIP Connor" buttons, Alana comes off more as an opportunistic outcast who is trying to act like her being lab partners with Connor means something at all, Heidi dismisses Evan's feelings when she forgot about their taco night because she doesn't want to accept that she's letting him down. The film felt very sanitized compared to the stage version, like, they didn't want the characters to be too complex.

[@osmanyousif7849]

@@creategenius719 , agree with everything you said except for the fact that the movie didn’t want it’s secondary characters to “be too complex”. Because it’s made abundantly clear from Ben Platt and his daddy that they wanted all the focus to be about Evan, portraying him in the film as if he’s a victim who’s compelled to what he did instead of having any sort of autonomy. Well good f**king job with that, Marc.

[@owenleal]

Its kinda badass of Connor's actor to finnesse both the best and shortest role in the film, show his emotional range by playing both a sad emo version and a charismatic show toons version of the same character and then cut out of the film before he has to do anything else. Literally the perfect acting reel.

[@fawnlowell6094]

Conner's actor is actually really good! his name's Colton Ryan and he's the second lead in my favorite musical Alice by heart where he also shows incredible range. i hope he gets roles better than this lol

[@darbyfitch518]

“Pretends to know a girl’s dead brother so he can get together with her” is like some It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia shit

[@jeniferjoseph9200]

Woulda worked better that way. In fact it did; it’s called Heathers lol

[@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick]

Yeah, I can imagine a movie portraying something like that with the same energy as Jay and Silent Bob picking up chicks outside of an abortion clinic.

[@redorthros]

"The Gang Find a Dead Body"

[@robloggia]

He's got a Dennis vibe going on so that makes sense.

[@Jack91790]

Eh, it's not quite that bad. He does try to tell people. They want badly to believe Connor had friends so they ignore him. It works much better in the play.

[@Politoed89]

connor's family at thanksgiving in 5 years like "remember that creep with the caked on foundation that sang pop songs at us"

[@chillcreep4926]

this made me laugh until I started choking and coughing, thank you

[@MrAdryan1603]

"Sang pop songs at us" - Hahahahaa

[@playmakersc12k82]

😂

[@BlakeGeometrio]

😭😭😭

[@tess8691]

NOO THIS KILLED ME 😂😂😂

[@JinStreams]

Honestly horrifying to me that the movie never fully grapples with the fact that Evan effectively erased Connor from memory. Like his parents will never remember their son again without it being tainted by Evan's lies.

[@skeetsmcgrew3282]

It's not like it was basically ok otherwise. I'm not sure you can make the memory worse really. In fact, by giving the family a villain to hate, it might help ease the guilt of failing to save their son's life. They will instead remember the asshole who came and effed with their lives for no good reason

[@thelittleredhairedgirlfrom6527]

@@skeetsmcgrew3282it’s still really messed up and adds even more trauma to an already grieving family

[@guldmattbb473]

No honestly that is probably the scariest part of the entire story. Imagine being dead and some random guy you barely know starts telling your family completely fictional stories about you to a point that they believe in a completely different view of who you were as a person. At that point, even if that view is ‘better’, your own legacy isn’t yours. Your life and the person you were in it is practically meaningless because the story outlives the author

[@stealthlord6620]

I’m sorry but hearing the mom confront him for his lie, and then hearing him mumble “words fail” will never not be the funniest shit i’ve ever heard

[@owenleal]

To this day, whenever Im exasperated, I will warble "wOrds fAil, woOrdds fAil 😔" and no one will get it.

[@jack-a-lopium]

I love that bit, it's so good :D

[@Rumhaaaaaaaam]

time stamp bc this is also my favourite moment of the whole video: 50:56

[@Chlo255]

During If I Could Tell Her, when Ben Platt was advancing on Zoe with that depraved look in his eye my friend whispered "he's got a knife" and it was the most enjoyment I got out of this movie

[@heath6802]

Depraved is exactly the way to describe Platt’s performance there and in the other Zoey scenes

[@sottosopravoce]

I guffawed.

[@snakes7303]

This made me laugh, a very loud laugh, and all my family heard …..

[@Goobiusgoober]

I NEED TO WTAHC THIS MOVIE WITH MY FRIEND AND SAY TAGT AHAHAHHA THANK YOU

[@lulzforthewin2509]

27:56

[@mahrinui18]

Every song is triggered by someone walking up to Evan and pressing E.

[@katzea.a7880]

It's sensitive to context amirite?

[@NonsenseWithGlasses]

I wonder how many songs were accidentally triggered by someone trying to pick something off the ground too close to him.

[@SnakeandBake1]

@@NonsenseWithGlasses too many they’re like unskippable cutscenes

[@kimifw58]

What's E?

[@katzea.a7880]

@@kimifw58 The E key in a keyboard, famously used as the interaction button in many pc games

[@edgarallenhoe3518]

I love how the inciting incident of this story relies on Evan having a therapist, and then that therapist promptly drops off the face of the earth for the rest of the story.

[@baguettegott3409]

Oh my god, I've never thought about that... and imagine how much that could have helped him, having a person who he can be honest with and who is on his side through all of this - he could have told his therapist the truth right away, and they would probably have helped him navigate out of the net of lies he created, instead of making it progressively worse.

[@Madcapredcap]

Are we sure that was even a licensed therapist? Did anyone see their license? Did the family just roll up to a place with a plastic banner hung over the door that said "Bob's Discount Therapy And Halloween Costumes"?

[@luna-mo3ol]

Evan or his mom did say that he stopped going to the therapist after everything happened though right?

[@black-moon01]

yeah his mom says he skipped an appointment, its still weird that he doesnt see him throughout the length of the movie. it seemed like a regular session kind of deal

[@nozzwells]

@@luna-mo3ol he says he doesn’t need his meds anymore, doesn’t mention the therapist though

[@mad8598]

I feel like in another universe there’s a musical about a teenage girl whose deeply troubled, emotionally (and occasionally physically) abusive older brother commits suicide, and his family discover that he was friends with a withdrawn boy in her class she barely knows. Her parents invite this boy into their lives in a bid to try and understand their lost son better. The girl, full of confused feelings about her brother and how everyone is reacting to his death, gradually finds herself being drawn to the boy and then falling for him. And then it’s revealed the boy’s stories are lies and he was motivated to get close to the girl’s family because he’s had a secret crush on her.

[@solmarcet6157]

Up until reading this comment it had never ocurred to me how good it would be to have Zoe's perspective on this. "Requiem" is a pretty solid song and I resonated with it a lot, that glimpse of the character that we're provided with then is quite human. Honestly I'd love to have someone reboot this with Zoe as the protagonist, even if it's just as fanfiction lol.

[@Muzer0]

Ah, so it's like the version of Passengers everyone wishes we got... Damn.

[@Michelle-js5kh]

This is Saltburn 🤣

[@mysticalasduck6514]

And it’s actually good

[@mchikos]

“YA movies that handle suicide poorly” is really its own genre huh

[@vanessaajohn]

The channel Caleb Joseph has a great video breakdown of this

[@kittykat5090]

i guess so lmao

[@chipsleftwing]

@@vanessaajohn which video was that one?

[@solbutton1611]

My thoughts exactly

[@onettaviator5396]

*wHEEZE*

[@Jacobyeavello]

Movie could've been fixed if they added a scene right at the top where Evan looks to camera and says dryly: "I can't believe I was held back ten years in a row"

[@turkicnomad5632]

That make up was so bad, It might as well have been 10 years per grade.

[@marsplease]

I almost choked on my own spit reading this comment, thanks

[@Jacobyeavello]

@@braingirl9112 No, because you just add her to that same scene and she looks to camera and says: "Yes, I was also held back too, as well"

[@1Hawkears1]

I can only read this in Jenny's deadpan delivery lol

[@akumakorgar]

He's the high school Van Wilder

[@Deepfrog9]

I think it’s so funny how Evan says “the only man that I love is my dad” in a homophobic joke line, only for multiple songs to mention that he isn’t in contact with his dad at all and hasn’t seen him in over a decade.

[@bee.2392]

EVEN HATES MEN‼️🚨‼️🚨

[@jamesofglory]

I took that as being intentionally dissonant because it's like he's lying about one more thing but it's also just generally kind of a lazy lyric

[@jack-a-lopium]

He's secretly a latent homosexual.

[@morganhill643]

It’s coming from Connors perspective too tho so it’s not that weird

[@ferretzcon]

in the play both connor and evan when they are singing that line, they emphasize this comment, highlighting the ironic fact that none of them get along with their respective father, it's intentional

[@RiverHolly13086]

i thought the "his best friend died... you won't believe what he did next" screenshot was a funny little title card created for this video essay, when i saw it in the actual scene movie i just about lost my mind

[@alice88wa]

Ah, okay, thank you! I wondered the same but I'm not about to watch this thing.

[@OmegaSoypreme]

Wait, what?

[@salem-01]

It’s a *_WHAT_*

[@brkh96]

Dhar Mann vibes

[@Forestfreud]

“Maybe Evan is not a nice boy. Maybe he’s just a quiet boy.” Another Jenny quote I will remember forever

[@0meAcat1]

Seen that one commented a few times hahaha that one she touched with a needle

[@guidetoanything]

YEEEESH LOL

[@sylviapage61]

Bro if people were better at knowing quiet boy ≠ nice boy

[@aylishmorehouse666]

Truly a sentence that will live rent free in my mind indefinitely

[@deereye87]

This makes me _hmmmm_

[@punkpossum6192]

This movie is unintentionally very good at depicting social anxiety because 28 year old Ben Platt in ghoulish teenager cosplay accurately depicts how I think I look in any given social situation

[@Ceduria]

Omg yes 😂

[@suemccashland]

😂😂😂

[@lexnight]

Pretty much.

[@Robstafarian]

That is why I do not dress that way, seriously.

[@BelleFlower15]

😂😂 I do feel just as ghoulish and unsettling in front of people, it's true

[@doom3798]

he literally looks 40 surrounded by all these school kids... they should rename the film to Dear Chris Hansen

[@Haze-xr9rc]

i fully wheezed

[@rachellloyd2324]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@honeybea4845]

STOP AKFJSKFNSNG

[@hogndog2339]

Evan Hansen, Chris Hansen, Chris Evans … it’s all connected

[@dead_byte]

I can't get over the line "A letter to yourself? What is that a sex thing?" Like, what sex thing could that possibly even be? It's a letter to yourself, not an erotic y/n fanfiction. Do you think Evan is like, flirting with himself in these letters?? Does Jared just assume that anything he doesn't understand is a sex thing? Does he think quantum physics, rocket science, and brain surgery are all kinks? I have to know what lead to that bizarre conclusion. I will take any answer either from the Jared character himself or the script writers, because just as inscrutable as Jared saying it is the fact that they wrote it, and that not only that, but the editors and director _also_ thought it was a worthy inclusion

[@judyh3707]

It wasn't funny anyway (fruit hanging so low that its rotten), and became much less funny because like you said, it doesn't even make sense

[@pseudonymous9153]

It's exactly what a teenage boy trying to sound cool would say

[@FlyNAA]

@@pseudonymous9153 Ikr? The OP here was spending way too long (that is, more than zero) looking for justification.

[@pseudonymous9153]

@@FlyNAA I mean I wouldn't put it past the terrible writers to have genuinely thought it was a good logical line. But it at least works I context, whether or not that's intentional.

[@swagromancer]

Now that you mention it, I may or may not have a serious rocket science kink.

[@FrenkTheJoy]

Adults playing teenagers isn't an issue for me, but he just looks SO old in this movie that without context it looks like it's about a married man who's going through a mid-life crisis and is trying to get the neighbor's teenaged daughter to hook up with him. He looks younger outside of the movie! For some reason having a beard makes him look closer to being a teenager.

[@addstrat1207]

It's because beards hide mouth wrinkles. A neatly trimmed beard can make you look younger.

[@punkyagogo]

@@addstrat1207 Interesting. I always thought guys looked younger after shaving their beards.

[@JoAndGetFat]

He also just looks… normal outside of the movie.

[@CemetryGator]

He looks like a slightly younger Dennis from It's Always Sunny. Which is not the look you want, unless you're going for the psychopath angle.

[@tatianamarshall9971]

In 'The Politician', which was filmed the same year I believe, Ben Platt plays a teenager and passes well enough as one. He's still clearly not a teenager, but it's more forgivable due to the hair and makeup helping out. The makeup and the hair in this movie are just not it whatsoever. Even if I forgave the hair, THE MAKEUP plssss they didn't even try

[@bondfool]

“Maybe Evan is not a nice boy. Maybe he’s just a quiet boy.” Oof, that got real.

[@matthewduffy2191]

Ya that was a great line

[@mrcritical6751]

He’s not the nice kid dealt a bad hand and looked down upon by the rest of the school, he’s the kid that people know what he’s like tell you to leave him alone

[@kmhkennedy]

Sounds like decent ish story. The whole new girl in town, think the nice guy outcast is bullied and different, befriends him only to find out he is actually an outcast cos he sucks. So… twilight, or Heather’s. Never mind

[@mfenn7325]

Was looking for this quote called out. As someone who had to learn this lesson directly a few times...there are low-key problems with socializing that all awkward or socially-withdrawn people are sensitive and nice or need you, a little girl, to be their friend. Nope - don’t ignore the hair raising on the back of your neck.

[@EmissaryofWind]

@@mfenn7325 this reminds me of how after school shootings, shooters are often characterized as sad lonely kids who would have done nothing wrong if their classmates had just befriended them. The way that attitude pushes off the prevention of school shootings on the very victims has always made me extremely uncomfortable. Just the fact that some people would expect a child to go out of their way to befriend someone who is already unstable, possibly violent and often harbors some form of bigotry, in order to not get brutally murdered by that person is appalling.

[@mothballsva]

i was forced to sing both “This is Me” and “You Will Be Found” in my high school choir, and they sounded so god damn similar that i felt like i was losing my goddamn mind.

[@paegr]

Literally the exact same thing happened to me. As a bass, nothing can put into words my burning hatred for Broadway songs haphazardly slapped into choral arrangements

[@analyticalbaguette]

I am gradually discovering that apparently a universal experience for choir kids was having to sing these two songs

[@theflyingspaget]

singing you will be found is a core memory for me and it is very much a negative one

[@valeale8851]

Oh no

[@akudotv]

I love how you can tell Jenny was working on the Evermore video during this by the flower crown on Aragog

[@stellabelikiewicz1523]

Oh man, A CLUE 😄 🌸 🕷 Were we ever so young that there was a time before the incredible evermore video existed 🤔

[@royalblanket]

"I've been toiling away at like a 3 hour video for months"

[@iannoome1898]

She works so hard for us

[@MrsMcTaco]

Glad I’m not the only one just constantly rewatching her videos

[@debbiemcpherson2426]

OH MY GOD

[@11tw48]

"the Dear Evan Hanson movie feels like propaganda written by Evan himself" - another knockout line.

[@Apolita1987]

Or his daddy, the producer.

[@PKEin]

I’m treating this as canon; the movie is the result of stage Evan trying to recuperate his image after becoming rich from the lie, then getting cancelled for it

[@OnTheAlmondTree]

Jenny has a lot of knockout lines here

[@11tw48]

@@PKEin a bit like the weird FNAF lore where the video games were made by the business in order to mock the idea that the murders had ever happened.

[@mrcritical6751]

@@PKEin in universe Connor’s family made the musical to expose Evan for the asshole he is so Evan using all his orchard money brought the movie rights and made the movie adaptation to make himself look better

[@JoshuaWillis89]

Evan literally looks like an SNL parody version of a kid. It’s embarrassing.

[@mockneck]

Reminds me of Jonah Hill's Adam Grossman at Benihana... (except somehow Jonah Hill is actually a more convincing 7 year old than Platt is as a teenager)

[@the-amazing-karnak]

How do ya do, fellow kids?

[@jamiet.s.2137]

I thought this as well and halfway through the movie, I realized he looks a bit like Fred Armisen as one of his Portlandia characters and now I can't unsee it....

[@Xondar11223344]

@@jamiet.s.2137 He looks like Fred Armisen playing a teenager in a particularly hilarious/ridiculous Portlandia sketch.

[@KenzieJordyn]

“Watch what I can do!” 😂

[@consentclub614]

It's so weird that any actor would BRAG about nepotism, especially when they're being cast as a socially anxious teenager

[@hello_alpine1693]

To be fair that seemed more apologetic than bragging lol

[@osmanyousif7849]

Platt's the type of guy who'd lecture the public on how people like him are victims, and say they must check their privilege.

[@kathleenperrier5380]

I think one of the worst things about both the movie and stage musical is the fact that they have a character commit suicide, but everyone's attention is on what it means for themselves or what they can do about it. Not a single solitary person, with the worst offender being Evan himself, drew attention to the fact that Connor felt so horrible about himself and so hopeless about his direction in life that he would rather off himself than reach out for help to get better. Not a single person, including his PARENTS, were wracking their brains trying to understand how he could have felt so terrible that death seemed more comforting than anything else. I know that in universe Connor was not a well-liked person, but you would think his family would have some degree of guilt, grief, and uncertainty about his suicide. The only character I can give a pass to in this regard is Zoe because the show does a good job explaining her conflicting feelings towards her brother and it would make sense for her to not mourn someone who emotionally abused her. But his parents don't seem to be making any attempts to figure out why he drove himself to end it all, and no Evan's letter that they thought Connor wrote doesn't count because that gives an extremely vague reasoning for why he ends it all. The closest this show comes to addressing the topic of his suicide is the fight the Murphy family has right before "Words Fail" finally airing out their grief about his death and how yelling at each other about all the ways they failed him whether it was through enabling him, berating him, or a toxic mix of both. But that incredibly well written scene is brought to a screeching halt when Evan drops the bomb on them about the reality of his relationship with Connor. Not even the people running the Connor Project seem to consider for one moment that maybe, maybe, the Connor Project should be a suicide prevention project and raising money to fund mental health programs, research centers for teen psychology, how to give suicidal teens the resources necessary to seek help as an alternative to the dark one they're thinking about, literally anything would be better than funding an apple orchard that only helps Connor and his family. It is so rare for me to see a show mangle its moral messages and themes this disastrously and I honestly cannot believe no one was in the writers room to tell Pasek and Paul to take a hard look at the story they've written.

[@MrSamwise25]

On this note, "You Will Be Found" is so hypocritical. How are we supposed to take seriously the message of "when it's dark people will be there for you", while Connor was alone to the point of committing suicide and is now having his memory overwritten with lies?

[@FlyNAA]

I think we're to assume that all the "guilt, grief, and uncertainty" happened normally as it would for any grieving family, and the musical focused on Evan's story rather than it.

[@osmanyousif7849]

You know, I think I should take a moment an recommend to you a film that tackles something like this much better. A film called World's Greatest Dad, starring Robin Williams. In that movie, the character Lance Clayton is an underappreciated high school English/Poetry teacher, who has a passion for writing and yearns to become a famous author. He's a man who gets looked down upon by many, including his own son Kyle, who is an ungrateful misanthrope. One night, he finds Kyle accidently killed himself, and Lance, distraught by seeing his own son dead, especially in a very humiliating way, stages his death as a suicide, to salvage a bit a dignity for Kyle. While nobody finds out what actually happen, a student manages to obtain Kyle's "suicide note" and publishes it in the newspaper (Because that's what any sane person would do, RIGHT!?!?!). But much to Lance's surprise, everyone starts to praise him for having such a "lovey intelligent son" like Kyle, claiming to be his friend, and become fascinated by him. Therefore, Lance takes advantage of this to get the attention he's always wanted, and decides to publish a fraud journal under Kyle's name about "things Kyle did, before his death". But something to note is that the movie knows that what Lance's doing is self-serving, especially if you think about the movie's title. But you are still able to empathize with Lance, even if what he's doing is wrong. However that wasn't what the film's focus was about. You see, instead of the release of Kyle's "journal" having everyone connect with him and each other, it's made clear that's BULLS**T. Because the people who are claiming that they were connecting or inspired by Kyle, were the same ones who detested him (although, justifiably so...). They never knew him or cared about him, but are just hopping onto the bandwagon, using Kyle's death to signal their own virtue. The film's premise was meant to be a satirical black-comedy, on how people make the dead become celebrities and how everyone starts saying how they knew this person and cared so much about them, but what if these people were actually bulls**ting, behind our backs this whole time. So World's Greatest Dad works because it's not trying to be some lecture about mental illness, but creates a premise that has a protagonist you empathize with, while getting some good laughs at how absurd the whole scenario is. But Dear Evan Hansen tries to lecture about mental illness, makes the protagonist someone you're expected to sympathize with (but actually want to strangle the living crap out of), and tries to be all emotional and dramatic with it's absurdity.

[@Wawagirl17]

@@osmanyousif7849 Yay, thank you for this excellent summary and analysis! "World's Greatest Dad" is one of my top favorite films and it's very underrated (but you certainly need to be in the proper mood for it, emphasis on DARK comedy). And since I'm not a musical theater person, I had never heard of "Dear Evan Hanson," so when I first saw the movie trailer a few years ago my first thought was, "Oh, so it's like the plot of 'World's Greatest Dad' but a drama taken seriously?" I've since learned, despite not seeing the DEH movie, that its execution is terrible and tasteless, and much like how Jenny talks about "Heathers" - "World's Greatest Dad" is another example of how this premise and satire works SO much better as a black comedy.

[@jasperjazzie]

yeah, i love the song "requiem" but the dad's verse always rubbed me the wrong way, zoe had a valid reason to choose not to mourn connor, but "i gave you the world, you threw it away" is such a shitty reason to choose not to mourn your dead son. i understand anger is one of the stages of grief, and it's one that's not looked into as often as it should be, and grief _can_ oftentimes present itself in a "selfish" way, human emotions aren't perfect and all, but they completely fuck it up here imo. for a show trying to preach about mental health, they seem to completely ignore things that could have helped connor's mental health or kids like him in favor of whatever the hell they thought they were doing here. it's as shallow as something like 13 reasons why

[@prof.lysander6191]

What gets me is that they cut out "Good For You", which is arguably the best song in the original musical, because it's all about the side characters affected by his actions roasting the fuck out of Evan. It was an already hollow musical but at least that gave it some more substance; can't have any of that in the movie though!

[@mercuryeuphoria5052]

Same! I was really disappointed when that song was cut, it's my favourite and it would've made the movie perhaps a biiit more tolerable for me than the hell that it is.

[@mcpugh]

This comment made me go watch an animatic of it, and yep you’re right it’s the best song in the musical. Better than Sincerely Me, just cuz this one isn’t terribly sad and sinister with context.

[@lizzyizzywizzy]

literally. i refused to watch this movie even though i enjoyed the musical simply FOR the songs and FOR the reason that evan is absolutely the villain. i never pitied evan and appreciated how the musical showed that people who seem like they’re being really nice are actually fucking evil. but the way they totally bastardized the characters in the movie and tried to be like “poor baby :(((( poor little evan and poor alana and poor jared and poor conner :(((((“ like nah they might have mental illnesses but do not have immunity from their awful, AWFUL behaviors.

[@lizzyizzywizzy]

what i didn’t include in that other comment is that i enjoy good for you because it SHOWS how even people who were in the gig for their OWN profit are hurt by evan who was WORSE than them. it shows that evan really is the villain.

[@KaninCotton]

SAME!!!!!! good for you is one of my fav musical songs from any musical- and I was so disappointed to see it cut out :( not to mention having such a big impact on the other characters

[@badvibesonly3526]

Evan: I hope all depressed kids can climb a tree like I did Everyone: Didn't you do that to commit suicide? Evan: 👁👄👁

[@Sisu41414]

I’m happy I wasn’t the only one who noticed that

[@Cryptid_Robin]

Nice pfp

[@MoonShadowWolfe]

This show is full of stuff like that. Stuff that _could_ intentionally be a dark, scary implication of how Evan is a weirdo liar or Evan has no self awareness, but there's no way of knowing to what degree his manipulation is actually being framed as wrong.

[@7_ty_]

He did say “Maybe they won’t let go” implying that they need to keep holding on and keep climbing to reach the sunlight, but the analogy is indeed very confused

[@tinfoilslacks3750]

Close up on Evan's shocked face, smash cut to credits, Believer by Smash Mouth plays

[@oneghost1257]

They probably would have gotten that award if they hadn't miscast Evan so badly. That role really was made for Colm Wilkinson and he was definitely robbed of the opportunity to play a teenage boy in the movie.

[@hases2772]

Honestly woulda loved that, very surreal, and you know Colm would dominate those songs

[@abyssalnightmare551]

As someone who grew up during the musical era of Tumblr, I knew nothing about this musical or its plot, I just saw tons of people shipping Evan and Connor (I think?) Now that I know the plot I'm just completely dumbfounded as to why people were doing that.

[@abyssalnightmare551]

Also, I've got to say, if my sibling died and some random kid started lying about being close with them to date me and I found out I would be going to jail for attempted murder.

[@fiend-ish1090]

it was certainly one of the more interesting sides of musical fandom lol. i was on tumblr at the exact same time and when i read the synopsis for dear evan hansen for the first time, i remember being so dumbfounded that this was the musical ppl latched onto. at least the gay jokes in the other popular musicals at the time weren't so cruel....

[@gabriellegoodwin4422]

I remember thinking “aw that’s cute. Maybe it’s a musical about a couple of bff’s who like fall in love or something. I’m gay, I like that shit” and it ended up being a drama about suicide and exploitation and I felt really weird about myself afterwards.

[@jasperjazzie]

@@gabriellegoodwin4422 i'd seen "sincerely me" and thought the same thing, i thought it was some goofy dark comedy thing based on the tone of that song. it was not. it's wild how vastly different in tone that one singular song is, and honestly if they'd kept that dark comedy vibe throughout the whole thing i would have liked it a whole lot more, but they try to play all of this completely seriously and do a piss poor job.

[@on3zt2ey9c]

i've always thought that the whole musical was in the same light as the sincerely me song because it's probably the only one that ever got into my circles enough to draw any attention. i was going to by the plot because the song made it look almost self-aware and darkly comedic. the shock i felt after watching this vid and learning that the rest of the play is drastically different lmai

[@greathorn]

Ben yelling “I LOOOOOOVE YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOU”, his face desperately attempting to escape his head, while slowly approaching Zoey as the camera stays entirely still is absolutely horrifying

[@theoneandonlymichaelmccormick]

Yeah, the cinematographer didn’t know what the hell they were doing.

[@theconsciousobserver6829]

This is how white guys act what's the problem

[@dildonius]

@@theconsciousobserver6829 Nononono. He never punched a hole in a wall.

[@nailinthefashion]

@@dildonius they aren't all that spicy though

[@LunaLaFae]

He looks a lot like Rick Moranis in Ghost Busters when he's possessed by the Key Master!

[@optimisms]

"The Dear Evan Hansen movie honestly feels like propaganda written by Evan Hansen himself," is honestly the best summary of the movie i've seen so far lol

[@thedestroyasystem]

Agreed

[@frzngrrl]

This statement was genius.

[@themyofmy]

Evan Hansen propaganda. god

[@malaizze]

Dear Leader Hansen

[@JediJuniper92]

This is what I’ve been saying for MONTHS, literally ever since I saw the damn thing.

[@MadAnime963]

Imagine how nice it would have been where at the end of the song, instead of an outside shot of the house, it settled on conners empty bedroom

[@chickenpermission6969]

oh my GOD that would have been so much better

[@alice88wa]

God damn, that is fantastic.

[@seineevee]

YES.

[@capital_L283]

You should have edited this movie

[@Catz1a]

As someone who saw Ben Platt do this live on stage and was very impressed by his performance...he actually really choose even more exaggerated facial expressions and hand gestures for this film. His performance was actually quite different. And, yeah, everyone else felt weirdly subdued and bland compared to the stage while he seemed wildly exaggerated. It was very confusing

[@anonymoussaga8723]

Huh. I was actually going to give Ben the benefit of the doubt after reading that the director said that the main goal of the film was to capture his performance for posterity (yes, really). I thought that perhaps he was told to perform exactly like he did onstage, but it sounds like he wasn’t.

[@Catz1a]

@@anonymoussaga8723 Yeah idk what to say. I went with my class of like 35 people and 30 of us were openly crying at his live performance but I definitely didn't feel that same energy when watching it with my friends (some who knew the story and some who didn't) on our TV. I get it's not as impactful through a screen but we were in a more comfortable place to cry and we just kinda stared...

[@SuzER08]

​@anonymoussaga8723 if the goal is to capture the performance for posterity then there should have just been a professional recording of the stage musical...

[@avelynn5976]

​@@SuzER08 yeah but if they post a recording they cant make a profit /s

[@notNajimi]

⁠@@avelynn5976 if only they can find some way to profit from a recording…

[@BlackCatFang]

So Evan was able to find new meaning in his life after someone else's suicide, while people remember that person better than he actually was? Yeah that's not going to get misconstrued by a depressed teenager.

[@apriljones1013]

Oh my god you're right that's a horrifying point

[@Cruznick06]

I was looking for this comment before making itself.

[@ellazenzen8735]

oh jeez, I didn't even think of that. considering how many depressed people I know (including myself) who love musicals that might be an issue. Thankfully none of us actually like this one

[@Iwasjustwondering89]

To be fair, depressed teenagers (or generally anyone suffering from depression) will fit anything into a “the world is shit and possibly better without me” box. That’s what meds and therapy are for, because it’s simply not true, but the feeling won’t go away, even if everyone tip-toes around them.

[@onettaviator5396]

@@ellazenzen8735 We did when we were 14 or 15 years old, but by the time 2019 came around basically everybody in the fandom grew out of it.

[@gabrielle3960]

the guy who played Connor looks like he completely upstages Ben Platt and his character dies literally right away. his dancing alone is really great. I hope this movie doesn’t harpoon his career

[@joe6185]

I mean they TECHNICALLY killed the character off so they kind of did lol

[@echenexcetera5702]

If the dude’s career is dead then at least he got to hit the first woah seen on film

[@PatrickBrianRiordan]

The actor was an understudy in the original musical, which is crazy because yes, he is obviously an extremely talented actor and in some ways that makes him perfect for the role of "guy who wasn't really given a chance and now he's just a character for others to control"

[@adamwarlock1]

If he and the girl who played Alana get film careers out of this, it was all worth it.

[@joe6185]

@@adamwarlock1 Amandla was in Darkest minds, the hate you give, and was rue in the Hunger Games???? Lmfao

[@notme222]

If they want to reboot Garfield as a live action musical, I nominate Ben Platt for Jon.

[@billciphergirl6049]

Y E S

[@user-tw3rh9po4t]

How about Chris Pratt

[@L0rdOfThePies]

I was thinking he looked familiar..

[@CletoFrost]

"the only man that i love is my dad" is such a childish "ew gays" line that its so brilliant i love hate it

[@stellabelikiewicz1523]

Right! It’s so cringe and the writing is so lacking in subtlety that you kind of *have* to lovehate it!

[@giselle9230]

It’s the only like if the song cut from the film, weirdly enough

[@leaffinite3828]

Also evans dad is pretty absent i thought?

[@fuzzyzombielove]

The whole premise of the story is someone with crippling social anxiety willfully creating a situation in which they are surrounded by emotionally compromised strangers, at the center of attention, and have to constantly worry about saying the wrong thing. This should be his kryptonite. These are all of the exact things he'd compulsively distance himself from. Then we're expected to believe he _thrives,_ when these conditions would be constantly wearing him down. It's like they came up with this idea that the character would do this morally reprehensible thing, and then they tacked on mental illness to make the character sympathetic. It's a square peg in a round hole.

[@jaguarenduda]

jeez I never thought of that but you're so right

[@onomatopoeia7505]

Yes! I'm not the only one thinking that! Great summary, thank you!

[@meatspectre6208]

One of many ways the story could've been improved would've been by having Evam crumble under the weight of the situation and confess. He and the whole situation would have felt much more believable if he'd just naturally come to find what he was doing unbearable, instead of needing to be prompted by [checks notes] a grieving family getting canceled on social media because of contrived misinterpretations of the alleged suicide note his "friend" leaked after being given it in confidentiality because she wanted to boost a Kickstarter to buy an orchard. The story tries so hard to make sure the audience sees Evan as sympathetic that they just end up making him look like a psychopath.

[@piperian3962]

I feel like this could make an awesome dark comedy. Imagine him digging himself deeper into his worst nightmare as he keep lying to cover up for himself.

[@willd.4808]

Honestly I think I would like the plot if Evan weren't an attempt at a sympathetic character & was purely a deceiving manipulative dude using his quiet demeanor to lure people into thinking he's a sad, gentle, shy teenager. I mean, people always say that sch**l sh**ters (I don't want the YT algorithm deleting my comment) are sad shy dudes. & of course not all sad shy dudes are manipulative but you're right that Evan's anxiety & insecurity, which we KNOW to be genuine, appear incongruous with his role as skillful manipulator relying on charm & social skills to deceive a grieving family. What if the anxiety & insecurity weren't genuine? I think that could be an interesting plot on its own.

[@LP-bi4vc]

"Maybe [he]'s not a nice boy. Maybe he's just a quiet boy." Actually this is amazing advice for teenagers. Just because a boy is quiet doesn't mean he's kind.

[@ethangrant8736]

Generally speaking I don’t think the assumption, especially in high school settings, is that quiet people are nice

[@goshdangit4503]

I'm a quiet gal, but people always think I'm a bitch because I don't talk constantly. I've been told I'm not by the people I do talk to though, I don't think that "quiet kids are nice" Is a common thought

[@Awesomeasumpta13]

@@goshdangit4503 Maybe it's part of the trope where everyone is wary of the quiet kid but they're actually really nice once you get to know them? And so people just projected that onto Evan? Idk.

[@lithiumkid]

@@goshdangit4503 they said “boy”, it doesn’t really apply to girls

[@lithiumkid]

​@CowoO often as long as a boy isn’t loud and obnoxious and rowdy, people do start to speak about him like he’s a nice, good person- their teachers, their peers, even people’s parents. this happpens even if they know nothing about him and haven't interacted with him, people just assume those kids must be of good character. there are exceptions: guys people see as threatening, creepy, or weird. eg. punk & goth boys don't receive this treatment as much.

[@enoughabouteve]

"part 3: mommy, why is the scary man singing?" gets me everytime

[@jp-wc4ce]

Dear Evan: words fail me... there's nothing I can say Narrator: despite saying this, Hansen continued singing for another three minutes

[@L0rdOfThePies]

Reminds me of “i am speechless” *proceeds to speak*

[@cosmodusty]

four. _four_ minutes of this song.

[@notme222]

Jenny: "Imagine if in every musical characters would just go around like 'Tell us what YOU'RE about' in order to trigger every song." Me: Yeah, I've seen Cats.

[@mstie3252]

😆

[@halfdemonprince]

To be fair, Cats had no plot in the first place.

[@ahhh4117]

@@halfdemonprince Isn't it about a buncha furries talking about their character backstories?

[@BloodyAltima]

@@ahhh4117 The loose plot is a bunch of cats competing to get into cat heaven. The actual plot is a vehicle for a number of technically impressive song and dance routines, loosely connected through some shared ideas, imagery, and the conceit that these characters are cats. Which, coincidentally, is why it was a terrible idea to have a director who does not engage with metaphors on their level and instead tries to make everything as literal as possible do the movie adaptation in (mostly) live action.

[@dancefan9000]

😂

[@allywallyeffect]

the part where he flatly belts out “i love you” to zoey with his sickly mannequin yellowish face and his buggy eyes while he slowly approached her closer and closer... as a high-school age girl that would genuinely scare me and activated my fight or flight response just seeing it on a screen

[@romeisburning6739]

I'm a 37 year old man and I almost dropped my phone when I saw it.

[@booktales1687]

Fear Evan Hansen

[@scylla1772]

@@booktales1687 The parody this movie deserves, and the audience needs

[@PoochieCollins]

Can this movie be enjoyed ironically -- so bad it's good? Or is it too boring or unpleasantly bad?

[@h.4703]

I legit pulled away from my screen at that, it was terrifying.

[@stella-kc7tp]

As someone who has lost a loved one to suicide, this is truly one of the most crass and insensitive ways i have ever seen portraying suicide. The fact the filmmakers are so desperate to portray Evan as a sweet little boy when he is carelessly manipulating a grieving family is insane to me

[@DastardlyDavid69]

Ben Platt looks like Fred Armisen in an SNL sketch playing a teen.

[@Aarkwrite]

Ben should’ve gone round the halls saying “how do you do fellow kids?)

[@kimveter5061]

A version of Dear Even Hanson where his lie gets found out when Connor reveals that he faked his own death only for him to return at the beginning of the 3rd act

[@bitchtits9292]

This is what I want

[@urbroz]

then itd be finally watchable

[@AbsoluteSkycaptain]

This made me want DEH to just follow the plot of His Face all Red somehow.

[@ansel569]

I would genuinely enjoy this so much, and i hate that you've put this idea in my head because it's an infinitely more interesting show that does not exist

[@CanalDoSahgo]

You're thinking of Megamind

[@ryangriffin5362]

The fact that so many broadway actors are gay and as a community in everyday life they constantly acknowledge this but then on stage any suggestion of queerness is usually laughably out of the question has always been so bizarre to me.

[@valentinahendrick9540]

Disney was a really big part of Broadway and still has a hold in it so I wouldn’t be surprised if that had something to do with it

[@distortedguitarist81]

Including Ben Platt (!)

[@elizabayroff7106]

Broadway is a deeply commercial medium. And as we see way too often with Hollywood, "commercial" = heteronormative narratives that don't disturb the masses, or at least their conservative governments and censor boards. Broadway is aiming to get the tourist set and make money on tours, that means not ruffling any feathers and sticking to what has worked before.

[@brianwarner2171]

@@distortedguitarist81 AND Benj Pasek?! WTF Dear Evan Hansen team??

[@hyperspace2752]

Hi , gay here. Ironic homophobic jokes are so prevalent in the community. I actually argued about it and people told me it's coping mechanism or some shit. Like yeah I get it but saying you want to commit hate crime because Frankie Grande looks gay af is just distasteful to me

[@KoiPuff]

Jenny is older than Ben Platt and yet she’d make a more convincing teen boy.

[@slimduuu]

I’m confused about how the murphys get doxxed and harassed because their mentally ill son felt lonely, but Evan comes clean with the lie and kinda just walks free to live his life? That shit would follow him to his grave

[@kelsolightly]

"so you've got a bunch of normal looking characters looking at this big, hunching, mop-headed man. Eyes sunken into his artificially puffy face, warbling out high notes like an anxious Jiminey Cricket" is the most hilarious, out of pocket, spot-on roast of a single character I’ve ever heard I’m obsessed with the way you speak lmao

[@reneedailey1696]

Jenny with a witty, devastating take-down is just as deadly as The Bride in "Kill Bill" with a sword- She DESTROYS.

[@owenleal]

Zoey: "what about the time he tried to break down my door, telling me he was gonna kill me for no reason?" Jenny: "wow, I cant believe he told her it was gonna be for no reason." Jenny is a professional piss taker.

[@Pineappolis]

My all-time favourite definitely doesn't show off Jenny's staggering facility of language as well as the one in the OP but it's still too good not to mention. When she did a reading of Colin Trevorrow's leaked script for Star Wars Episode IX, a new character was killed off and her response was, "he died the way he lived - wasting my time!"@@reneedailey1696

[@zbsfm]

you skipped my favorite part of that line, the "in shambles!" "So you've got a scene with a bunch of normal looking characters, and in shambles this big hunching mop-headed man, eyes sunken into his artificially puffy face, warbling out high notes like an anxious Jiminey Cricket" (agreed that this line is amazing, it's one of my favorite lines from jenny ever)

[@tikki2340]

Jenny is so funny cause you can just tell she’s been on the internet a WHILE. Like she’s been in these streets, an expert troll and counter-troll

[@melissapisarski9799]

He literally already won a Tony for the role. He needed to calm down and let the other kids play.

[@rgs8970]

I think he's aiming for EGOT 😑

[@cthulhutheendless1587]

Sharing is caring

[@missmusicalsrock]

Still salty about that honestly when Great Comet was right there. “No One Else” alone has more integrity than the entirety of DEH.

[@kemperboyd1209]

@@rgs8970 he will fail

[@Catsby83]

@@missmusicalsrock oh my god yes! I will die mad about the fact that it lost best musical! It’s got a clear story with intense emotion and a metric ton of bangers.

[@BiPirate]

What makes Evan's unredeemable actions more real for me is that Conner did have a best friend (kinda BF) in the book named Miguel. Side note, one of the reasons that the no homo jokes in the musical about Conner definitely not having a secret BF irritate me so much is because he literally did. There are 2 main scenes that Miguel really added to the story in my opinion. First, before Conner commits suicide he sent a text to Miguel, but because Miguel is at work he decides to call Conner later. By the time he calls Conner's dead. Second, in the book some of the chapters are from dead Conner's point of view, and when Evan calls the assembly Conner hears about his "best friend" giving a speech, and when he shows up he's like where's Miguel. TLDR I just think the existents of Miguel makes Conner's story much sadder, and I think it's stupid that he's not in the musical or show.

[@Im_Laura_Jones]

Wow, never read the book so didn’t know Miguel existed! Also, I’m glad I’m not the only one watching (or in my case rewatching for the 10th time) in April 2023 ☺️ The rewatchability of Jenny’s videos is off the charts!

[@mrcritical6751]

Honestly if that turned into Miguel becoming the real hero and exposing Evan it would be interesting

[@alice88wa]

Wait, so is Connor a ghost in the book?

[@madeniquevanwyk]

Yeah I can tell you why Miguel didn't make an appearance: would be too difficult to explain away. This story already hinges on like 57 things happening exactly that way without someone questioning it, if yet another person shows up being like "hey so I knew Conner and who the f are you" it would absolutely crumble

[@nicolersands]

@@madeniquevanwyk I think in the book they met in rehab. It could be a really damning way to expose him, like Miguel could have contacted Alana after seeing the letters about his suspicions. It would be kind of a twist, and a better reason for doubting Evan than ‘he was getting better in the letters’ or ‘Evan got the date he broke his own arm wrong’.

[@ashpanda]

my favorite line "Send it in to America's Funniest Home Videos - flustered child makes fool of himself after friend dies by suicide"

[@geoffreysorkin5774]

Bob Saget would have made it funny. Or turned it into a very special episode of Full House about how DJ and Kimmy learn that its wrong to laugh at the socially anxious kid at their school.

[@kai_malzonoe5283]

"His bestfriend died... you won't belive what he did next!" Sounds like a dhar man title

[@blond009]

Hahaha

[@hershelroswell]

"teenager imitates friendship with dead boy and INSTANTLY REGRETS IT"

[@omel9424]

@@hershelroswell *MUST WATCH*

[@FireBird826]

dear evan hansen has about the same depth as a dhar mann video

[@hershelroswell]

@@FireBird826 dhar evan hansen.....

[@emilyisannoying8756]

reminder that Ben is dating someone who also played the role of Evan onstage which makes the idea that he thinks no one else can play the role so much funnier

[@littlemau1360]

WHAT??

[@aelrah]

@@littlemau1360 there are actually at least two sets of Evan Hansens dating!

[@taylor11111]

This is hilarious.

[@Minam0]

@@aelrah omg

[@Minam0]

This makes me think of Jenna from 30 Rock dating Paul who does drag of her

[@FeeltheByrne07]

I have been a theatre actor for a large portion of my life. During my first film audition the first comment the Director made was "you're a theatre actor, aren't you?" He knew because everything I did was bigger than it needed to be. This was for a local film in Kentucky. How did a Hollywood Director not give Ben that note?

[@JinStreams]

Because Ben's dad was the producer

[@FeeltheByrne07]

@@JinStreams Fair point

[@annaparry4384]

When I was into this musical I vividly remember watching a Ben Platt interview where the interviewer gives an unfavorable synopsis of this plot/Evan's action. She describes it as Evan hijacking a family's grief for his own ends and falsifying this relationship. And Ben Platt pulled a face while she was doing it that all the comments picked on and said was because this woman was mischaracterising the play when in actually she was totally right. I think it's so interesting that the majority of the fan base for the musical for so long didn't think of it in this way. Evan was just a little guy who made an oopsie and we should forgive him and hate Zoe for not wanting to take him back.

[@gabriellegoodwin4422]

It’s the tumblr “lil boy” syndrome. There’s a lil guy who’s a soft boy and it doesn’t matter what he does because the fanbase has a strange mixture of maternal affection and attraction towards this lil dude. It’s a phase a lot of fandom kids go through and thankfully most of us make it through

[@Meimoons]

@@gabriellegoodwin4422Tumblr has a soft spot on some controversial characters and can only see them as character who can do no wrongs.

[@AdmiralBenches]

I’d be more interested in a musical titled “Dear Mr. Farmer,” about a farmer who bought an orchard, realized it wasn’t his thing, closed it, and then all of a sudden has to figure out what to do with some random Kickstarter’s $100,000 donation.

[@beanieguitarguy4070]

That actually sounds amazing.

[@rosiebud7922]

That reminds me of a story i know. This one dude worked all his twenties as a delivery man for companies that sold non alcoholic beverages, and then climbed up until he got to some important position still in the delivery area for Coca Cola. Years later he got fired and thought that it was a nice moment to start farming since he used to love it so much as a hobby. Turns out he hated it as a full time job, so he sold all his animals and lands and consumed by his resentment towards Coca Cola for laying him out, bought a big factory in the middle of a big city, miles away from his home. He moved there with all his family and started an non alcoholic beverage business just to compete with Coca Cola. He named his trademark soda Manaos, and it's one of the preferred sodas in argentinian homes.

[@SeymourDisapproves]

@@rosiebud7922 woah that's wild

[@skeetsmcgrew3282]

That is legit a great premise for a film, wow

[@act.of.whimsy]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@Desdemonakaylose]

Why does it have to be a romance with Zoe anyway... why can't Evan have sibling envy and then do a worrying unethical bid to replace her dead brother with himself. That would be wild, right.

[@ReiAnikaAyanami]

what are you saying? we can't have a guy and a girl together in a movie and _not_ have them fall in love! /s

[@Goobiusgoober]

HONESTLY THOOO, like it’s super creepy how he has a crush on her and basically uses her head brother to make a move on her 😭 plus he did kinda like the family so sibling envy would have been better tbh

[@MackenzieChandlerDunnavant]

Better yet, that happens and they get together anyway. The classic enemies to siblings to lovers arc.

[@mattheww9656]

@@MackenzieChandlerDunnavant That old chestnut.

[@aw7145]

They could have made it Hamlet but with siblings and the plot twist is that Evan murdered Connor so he could replace him in the family lmao

[@moongod5013]

“Sweaty 90s sitcom dad made of melting wax” is just a devastating combination of words

[@meewarwoowoo]

I love how angry Jenny is at the Kickstarter.

[@dusterlover888]

I LOVE YOU

[@hauntedmushroomsasmr7716]

So this movie is the male version of “Sierra Burgess is a Loser.” The main character who does truly despicable things in an attempt to deceive others for their own selfish means, but then are easily forgiven because everyone understands that “the kid has problems.” As though that somehow excuses their actions. “And then everyone clapped.”

[@fareehamehmood5278]

omg that movie sucked so mcuh

[@bardofthe90s57]

Sierra Burgess was actually a TERRIBLE adaptation of Cyrano deBergerac (which has issues, but it's classic French romance, sooo...). :/

[@elleeedman1808]

Although it’s even worse because Sierra does everything for the attention of a boy, which like yeah it definitely sucks and I would feel hurt and betrayed, but like ultimately the kid will be okay because it was only a stupid teenage romance anyway. But here this kid is lying to a family who just lost their very troubled son, a son they didn’t have much of a relationship with and he messed with their grieving process and the image of their son, giving them a sense of closure and comfort that is stripped away from them and now have to grieve with the revelation that he wasn’t who he was portrayed to be and none of those stories were true. If that was my kid and someone did that to me I’d be fucked up.

[@theatorrisi9695]

@@bardofthe90s57 Even in the original Cyrano de Bergerac, which was written in the 1800s, Cyrano never kisses Roxanne while pretending to be Christian. I don't know why they put that in the movie, it was SO creepy. Also, Cyrano doesn't "get the girl" at the end and even though he has low self-esteem, he still has integrity and does the right thing

[@queenofdisaster3480]

In the stage version, it feels more like Evan got sucked into it and it spiraled out of control, especially when he’s played by A LITERAL TEEN. With Ben as Evan, it feels more like an adult who’s manipulative

[@Psilocybin77]

Who thought Evan emotionally manipulating a grieving family would endear him to audiences.

[@henotic.essence]

It just demonstrates how our society is morally bankrupt.

[@Cheetahgirl_Studios]

Yeah I have no idea how that works. I’ve only listened to Good For You from the musical, never seen it, but that song told me more than enough about what Evan did. The dude could’ve come clean at any time and stop digging himself a hole, but he didn’t. Great work, Hansen.

[@seanmiller4170]

It's a problem of trying to add a conflict and arc for the story but it just makes things worse

[@m00nrac00n]

Honestly...hauntingly similar to stuff some dudes would actually pull these days. Awkward dating app screenshot compilations come to mind.

[@alive4ever865]

I liked some of the songs at first when I heard them without knowing what the musical was about. After I read the plot I couldn’t enjoy them anymore. Just imagining somebody were to tell me lies about my dead family member and gaslight me into believing I never knew them at all… it’s truly horrifying.

[@on_certainty]

To quote St. Vincent: "Making art about important things doesn't make it important art."

[@alice88wa]

Ooooh, thanks for sharing.

[@ArmandoGarcia-in2io]

The first songs in the soundtrack really made me think it was gonna be an amazing story that would touch on some really sensitive subjects. "Requiem" specifically because it shows how conflicted the sister is about hating her dead brother.Then I saw the musical and was like. "Oh..... jeez"

[@briandaaranda9735]

Same. I thought it would be a genuinely good story that touched on the intricacies of grief, like "Requiem" with the "we should mourn but I don't really feel it" sense for the sister, or "Break in a glove" with the "I should've been a better dad but it's too late now" for the dad. Instead... Well, this.

[@hexisphere7181]

this film actually depicts anxiety very well, in that whenever i look at Ben Platt's red, sweaty, grimacing, unhinged face bulging outwards in every direction, it makes my anxiety fucking shoot through the roof

[@janeeyre1990]

It would have been effective if they had a likeable, young (-looking) actor play the character as he is seen by other people and then Ben Platt could have played him as seen by himself. Like, in reality, he's a typical teenager, but in his own mind he is Ben Platt.

[@spookyho5994]

thank you for making me burst out laughing wtf

[@isamekailmahmud9302]

Underatted comment

[@sallypoe]

Omg thanks for this!!!! I wasn't expecting it but it resonates so much!!!

[@tarrowahtessla7456]

@@janeeyre1990 I am wheezing at this comment 🤣

[@bleepbloop5251]

This show's synopsis would make a crazy AITA post

[@debbiemcpherson2426]

NTA OP you meant well.

[@chocomelo454]

"a guy from my highschool died and now everyone thinks I'm his best friend and I'm dating his sister under the pretense that I am the only person who knows what her brother was like but I don't know a thing about this guy, AITA?"

[@stumpcluber]

@@chocomelo454 "okay so i know that title sounds bad.... BUT"

[@chocomelo454]

@@stumpcluber "HEAR ME OUT."

[@stumpcluber]

@@chocomelo454 LMFAOOO

[@codegavran]

Thank you Jenny. As someone whose brother took his own life, I've had this feeling that I 'have to' support stuff like DEH. This was a welcome relief.

[@limegreenelevator]

I'm sorry for your loss and hope you've been able to process your grief.

[@yupitsjessbbyx3]

Even if the movie was incredible, you don’t have to support shows or movies like this. No one gets to choose for you what media is conducive to your grieving process. I’m so sorry for your loss

[@wetpaint2875]

after my brother and my dad died i used to struggle with insomnia really bad (combination of night terrors and PTSD)... i used to put on this channel and listen to it as i tried to fall asleep. it really helped. her voice is really soothing. shit helped me through some rough times. i love your channel. kudos mate.

[@Jai_gagne_la_bagarre]

Hope you’re doing better mate, i really do

[@VultureSkins]

The line “maybe Evan is not a nice boy, maybe he’s just a _quiet_ boy,” legitimately gave me chills

[@mrcritical6751]

Because it’s 100% correct. Evan isn’t the nice kid with social anxiety who’s alone because he has trouble connecting he’s the quiet kid who nobody talks to because everybody who does know him know he’s bad news and should be avoided

[@cryptikkcries]

@@mrcritical6751 i think its more like no one knows he's bad news because no one talks to him, and we all just assume he's nice and quiet instead

[@meimae7804]

@@mrcritical6751 yeah, it’s sad when people are like this, there was this girl who i thought was just kind but shy so i talked to her, then upon talking to her i realized why she didn’t have friends because she would try to look up bakudeku p0rn on my phone and show me even when i told her i was uncomfortable with that, she also is incredibly rude to teachers who are nice to her, she makes offhand rude comments about people, and doesn’t do any schoolwork but instead looks up my hero academia r18 things on school computers

[@exosproudmamabear558]

@@meimae7804 These things doesn't even sound bad. Normal highschoolers do these kind of things all the time,nobody is perfect.

[@meimae7804]

@@exosproudmamabear558 also another exol

[@hada__02]

The absolute priceless irony of rewriting a character as gay in order to justify the dated homophobic jokes he makes while at the same time removing practically half of his screen time and agency will never be topped

[@muffinsdawg]

Oh he’ll be topped 👀

[@xDlauraxP]

@@muffinsdawg 😂😂😂😂😂

[@Persephone01]

The audience laughing at homophobic jokes too but now reflecting on it, maybe they tried to add them in to make us dislike him, idk. I guess I have a different sense of humour like dark humour but dont think anyone really should be mocked like that for who they are? Idk.

[@WhirlyBeepBoops]

I've only heard the songs, and read it as "maybe one or both could _be_ gay but are too scared to come out" That's just me, though, an overly optimistic person learning and understanding the whole spectrum of it all.

[@Homodemon]

@@muffinsdawg The character is a teen. Control yourself you sicko.

[@WillowWispGaming]

when i was in middle school my best friends boyfriend broke up with her and then minutes later confessed his feelings to me by making me listen to “If I Could Tell Her” on the school bus. good times

[@salem-01]

That’s so messy oh my

[@cs6465]

I’m so sorry, I feel bad for laughing! 😂 Poor you! Your poor friend!

[@sa.moss4410]

I know this video is about dear evan hansen but the ridiculously loud splat sound effect that they added to javert's suicide in tom hooper's les mis (at 13:26) will never fail to completely destroy the emotional impact of the scene and turn it into a gruesome comedy. Like i think when i first saw it i laughed out loud, its just awful

[@mastermarkus5307]

It's such a bizarrely gruesome choice for Javert to jump into a brick thing like that anyway, when in the original novel and presumably most versions of the musical he drowns himself. I think part of the impact of the suicide is also in how intentional drowning has to be, like you have to stop yourself from doing things to make you survive, which I think shows the audience just how dramatic of a change in Javert this is, that he's able to so fully resign himself to death after being so dogged previously.

[@lilyadams3417]

Honestly the Naruto run is probably the only accurate teenager thing Evan did in the movie.

[@ellw7830]

better characterization than any other moment in the film

[@sixstringedthing]

Sometimes it's fun to watch trash, to pick out those brief moments when the actors who probably knew it was going to be trash decided to just go with it and got the performance spot on. Unfortunately this is not that kind of trash.

[@ashikjaman1940]

This movie would have been at least 20% more funny if Evan had a flashback to him on a swing

[@janeeyre1990]

This isn't especially relevant, but more comments will only drive up Jenny's place in The Algorithm so what the heck: Whenever a Naruto run comes up, I think of a video I saw ages ago of self-taught free runners using a professional gymnastics gym in front of trained ballerinas. One of the free runners did a Naruto run at a vaulting horse, and a ballerina commented that his form was "interesting."

[@mollyoxy]

44:44 for anyone wondering

[@mu8242]

"Maybe Evan's not a nice boy. Maybe he's just a quiet boy." That whacked me across the face. It's pretty easy to confuse the two; very insightful

[@lordhirudo5311]

Michael Myers was a quiet boy…. 🎃

[@faithfm1]

Yup, we get the two confused a lot

[@themyofmy]

@@lordhirudo5311 LMAOOO 😭

[@thoughtsandquestions317]

Shinji was a quiet boy, but thats about it

[@callymac182]

Reminds me of Into The Woods. ‘You’re not good, you’re just nice.’ Coincidentally, that musical for having a far better song about not being alone.

[@ProjectLethargic]

with how they literally convey every single lyric with framing or evan's hand motions I think they cut "anybody have a map" because they couldn't get a good map prop

[@mopyozz]

Honestly this made me realize that this is probably a huge part of why High School Musical was so popular. The songs are all very balanced and all of them further the plot really smoothly.

[@Diamondelight92]

On stage, the hunched thing did definitely make him look truly like pathologically anxious and tense but I agree that up close and with everything else working against him, it does make him look like nosferatu

[@adamwarlock1]

The movie really needed a scene of someone coming to see him in his half-lit bedroom and him just swiveling straight up into a standing position.

[@jsmarch9022]

Not nosferatu lmao lm deadd

[@flowerheit4512]

Now I'm imagining a much better version of this musical where Evan is a vampire and it's like a black comedy where he eats Connor and makes up this elaborate lie to try and maintain his cover as a human teen

[@chimominino5083]

@@flowerheit4512 That is already a better movie

[@kiwichenier]

Rare reference. I like it.

[@roosterboots4684]

Can't believe they cast 54 year-old Fred Armisen as the teenage lead here, but kudos to him for trying something new

[@Emma-sr1vf]

THIS COMMENT HAS ME ROLLING

[@miaatkinson1067]

Thank you, I was wracking my brain trying to figure out why he looks so unsettling

[@erinpierce83]

Thank you for your help

[@funpolice5821]

This comment should be illegal!🙊

[@roosterboots4684]

@@funpolice5821 What are you? The fun poli- oh SHIT.

[@DecayOpossum]

The second I saw they got rid of “Good for You”, the song that actually holds Evan accountable, I knew this movie would be a shitshow. “Anybody Need a Map” getting cut was just the cherry on top.

[@whistlingstarlight2942]

8:55 This feels like watching someone who doesn't know sign language pretending to use sign language

[@TPNsBiggestFan]

THATS WHAT I WAS THINKING lmaoo

[@judyh3707]

He should have made finger guns for "shoot the breeze"

[@anti_fragile]

Physically can't get over the way Ben walks and moves in this. It's like a horribly exaggerated version of someone with anxiety. Like they told him "nobody will be able to tell your character is anxious unless you walk around like you're missing a few vertebrae"

[@nonesuch6833]

I think it may even be an attempt to make himself appear smaller. You know, so he doesn't look so much like a 45 year old man.

[@GamingWithHajimemes]

@@nonesuch6833 Boy, did that work well for him-

[@jadeharley7190]

To be fair, in stage acting everything needs to be exaggerated for people who are way far back but good god why did no one tell him stage acting is a whole other ballpark than film

[@enbeast8350]

As someone with anxiety, I can confirm we are not missing vertebra, but my spine is so anxious it can't stay straight

[@irongirltoni]

Anxious people just walk with their head down, and maybe slightly quickly with bad posture

[@gerbilfantastic]

Cynthia: "But... you lied about knowing my dead son." Evan: "wOOOOOORdS FaEHl~"

[@dialecticsjunkie7653]

"Words fail" is what the songwriters were thinking when they couldn't write their way out of this dead end. Somehow their internal monologue made it into the lyrics

[@generalhorse493]

Evan: "Dude I played along with this lie to try to fill my inner void and so did you."

[@themandownstairs4765]

@@dialecticsjunkie7653 *cinemasins voice* the writers' dialogue somehow ends up as the first line of the song. it also happens to be a line I said when I found out this was the film's main conflict! [ding]

[@mossgrows6540]

the cut from colm wilkinson to ben platt singing almost the exact same note broke me