... or, even good (let alone worthy of the Broadway stage, or a major feature film budget, or Academy Awards).

Like the music biz, the Hollywood film industry all too often equates commercial success with genius. For several years after La La Land and Frozen, two songwriting teams of average talent were offered pretty much every gig in Hollywood. It was as though thousands of genuinely gifted, hardworking tunesmiths had fallen off the edge of the Earth.

Does the ticket buying public care who wrote the songs? Short answer... no. Does hiring writers who have been blessed by serendipity guarantee that everything they touch from now on will turn to gold? Give me a break! (Sorry for the rant. I've been steaming about this for years.)

Having not seen Evan Hansen on stage, and being a sincere admirer of the multi-talented Ben Platt, I was looking forward to seeing the film. I can only hope it's not as pathetic as that Cats (throwing up in my mouth) debacle.

PS... I think Teddy Neely might still be playing Jesus on stage in his mid-70s. How old was Mary Martin when she last played Peter Pan? Dustin Hoffman was in his 30s when he was cast in The Graduate. In other words, I agree with you about the age thing. (Although, too-long-in-the-tooth Kevin Spacey portraying a teenage Bobby Darin on the big screen was pure, unabashed ego).