Come From Away Review
Streaming Movie Review - Musical - Apple TV+
This review originally appeared in The Dominion Post in September of 2021. But I really love this movie and as we near the anniversary of 9/11, this feels like a good time to post it.
Twenty years later, I can remember coming home from the store to the news that there had been an attack on the Twin Towers. I remember wondering what was happening, how long it would go on, how many more planes would be hijacked, how many people would die. The not-knowing was at least as frightening as the images playing on a loop on the television.
The musical “Come From Away” tells the true story of the people who were on the planes that were diverted from American air space to the island of Newfoundland and the tiny town of Gander following the attacks on 9/11. The musical was written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, and began playing on Broadway in March of 2017. It was nominated for seven Tony awards, including Best Musical.
A film adaptation was scheduled in 2020, but because of COVID, the decision was made to record a live performance with and release that for the 20th anniversary of the attacks. Christopher Ashley, who directed the stage production, was hired to direct the live recording.
The decision to record a live performance feels like a serendipitous one. The staging for this show is very unique, with only a few chairs and tables as props moved to look like a plane, then a pub, then a mountain range with ease. The shots felt deliberate, allowing us angles not able to be seen in a theater, but never feeling like they took me out of the experience of watching a staged show. At a time where CGI is the norm, having a stage stripped down to only the barest of essentials felt innovative.
The ensemble is made up of actors from several of the original Broadway casts, with each cast member performing as multiple characters. Simple costume changes, like a jacket or a hat, instantly convey what character is being portrayed, and lend to the sense of unity rather than separateness.
And at its heart, that’s what this musical and the film is about. People from all over the globe stranded far from their homes in the midst of one nation’s tragedy, and a town offering kindness and food and whiskey and a cod.
The story is, of course, deeply emotional and traumatic, but it is sprinkled through with moments of romance and even genuine levity. There are moments of distrust of and racism toward Muslims portrayed in the story, as we saw amplified in the days and years following 9/11. But we also see friendships formed. We see trust built. We see hospitality shared.
The last song contains the lyric, “If you’re comin’ from Toledo or you’re comin’ from Taipei, because we come from everywhere, we all come from away.” One of the beautiful things about this movie is the reminder that we’re all strangers, but we’re also all neighbors. And no act of terror can erase that connection.