2026 Sundance Film Festival Movie Review: The Musical

The Musical is the cinematic version of “men would rather (insert activity) than go to therapy.” The “activity” is a middle school play, but it’s not a school play you’ve ever seen and probably never will. Any more information about the play would ruin the fun of Giselle Bonilla’s entertaining but uneven comedy.

Tony Award-winning actor Will Brill stars as Doug, a middle school theater teacher and aspiring playwright who recently got dumped by Abigail (Gillian Jacobs), another teacher at the school. While Doug thinks he can mend his relationship with Abigail, she has already moved on, now dating the smarmy principal Brady (Rob Lowe), who is obsessed with getting his school a blue ribbon from the state’s education board. Doug is also assigned to produce the school play, which he chooses to be West Side Story, a classic story that will surely help the school’s chances of winning the ribbon. But after some unexpected inspiration, Doug changes the play and, as an act of sabotage and jealousy, keeps his changes a secret and brings his students along on the ride.

The Musical’s journey to the play’s opening night is fun and plays like an edgier version of School of Rock. Brill is great as Doug. Doug always feels like he is moments away from losing his mind and descending into unhinged madness. His chemistry with the children is superb, and all the children’s performances are fun. Watching Doug’s creation of the play as his madness grows is entertaining but chaotic to the point where you wonder how Doug got a job being around children. It’s tonally all over the place and a bit sloppy with its story structure, but the payoff is mostly worth it.

The biggest mistake The Musical makes is not showing us more of the actual musical. Once you learn the subject matter of the play and see the direction it is going, you wish Bonilla had shown at least one set piece or song. The musical plays out in a slow-motion montage of quick shots of the children acting, which is uproarious, and shots of parents and faculty members quickly figuring out the play is not West Side Story. Their faces slowly descend from shock into anger. For a film that hinges on its finale and what the play is about, it would have benefited greatly from letting us see a sliver of the play’s plot or hear parts of a couple of songs. Instead, we are left to wonder what took place in the film, a real let-down for a film with a darkly brilliant idea.

The Musical played in the U.S. Dramatic category at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.

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