Being the Richardos is everything I hoped it would be and more. It is a beautifully crafted story that delves into the lives of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz at the height of their fame. The timeline of some of the events of their lives have been merged together to make the story more captivating. But overall this was an absolutely delicious production that left me wanting more and leaving me with a huge smile on my face as it was fantastic to see Nicole Kidman hit it out of the park with this performance, I honestly can’t see anyone else in the role, she is captivating.
Being a huge fan of Lucille Ball, like many other fans, when first hearing that fellow Australian, Nicole Kidman was cast to play Lucille Ball in Aaron Sorkin’s Being the Richardos, I too was a little confused. Nicole Kidman is a fantastic actor don’t get me wrong, she played some amazing roles, but I couldn’t understand the decision, admittedly I also didn’t understand Javier Bardem as Desi Arnaz.
Being the Richardos focuses on a time in Lucille Ball’s life where two pieces of information about her life are about to be splashed across the pages of the national newspapers, while they are in the midst of filming the second season of I Love Lucy.
Firstly, that Desi Arnaz has been having an affair, and secondly, that Lucille Ball is a communist. You have to remember in the 1950s being associated with communism was the kiss of death to anyone’s career in the entertainment industry. It was around this time that there was the McCarthy “witch hunt” where a long list of individuals were “blacklisted” for being associated with the communist party in America and their careers abruptly stopped. So, to have your name linked to the party while you were filming a hit TV series, could spell certain doom.
Aaron Sorkin has developed a film that highlights the dynamics of an incredibly successful woman who is managing two large crisis’ in her life while managing a studio, creating a hit TV show and also raising her daughter. What is also enjoyable about this movie is that it does go into the backstory of how Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz worked so hard to get to where they were in the 1950s and the intricacies of their marriage.
Javier Bardem as Desi Arnaz is flawless. The mannerisms, the voice and the body language, you feel that Desi Arnaz is right there in front of you performing on the screen. It is truly remarkable. A stellar performance.
Nicole Kidman as Lucille Ball, seriously she has captured everything about Lucy. I was blown away by her performance as this was something I wasn’t expecting. If anything, I didn’t know what to expect. But this was a fantastic surprise and just reconfirms that Nicole Kidman is a brilliant actor who has grown incredibly.
Being the Richardos is a film about the power of one determined woman, who at the height of her fame had it all, but it all could have come crashing down if she didn’t use her wit, skill and business intuition.
Nicole Kidman as Lucille Ball is something that she will be remembered for all the right reasons and it is worthwhile to watch Being the Richardos just for this performance alone, if you aren’t a Lucille Ball fan. But if you are a Lucille Ball fan, like myself, then you are going to be pleasantly surprised by the remarkable film.
Being the Richardos is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.
