In the Heights is not a perfect movie. The musical numbers, however, make it a must-see big-screen experience. Between Lin-Manuel Miranda's brilliant songwriting, the actors' incredible voices, Christopher Scott's dance choreography and John Chu's intuitive sense of how to direct a musical, the In the Heights movie has a ton to recommend for anyone who even mildly cares about musicals.
Here's our ranking of the five best song-and-dance sequences in In the Heights, based on a combination of music, visual spectacle and emotional impact.
5. Blackout
Lin-Manuel Miranda is great at writing epic overlapping ensemble numbers. In In the Heights, where there aren't as many memorable solos as there are in Hamilton, these group numbers make up the heart of the musical. "Blackout" was the end of Act 1 in the Broadway production; the movie adaptation does a strong job building up to it and letting its mix of disaster and hope explode like the fireworks in the night sky. Though this number is overall more about vocal acrobatics than physical ones, the breakdancing bits stand out.
4. Breathe
Nina, played in the movie by Leslie Grace, the best-developed character in In the Heights, and "Breathe" is both her introduction and her big tearjerker number. She's returning home after dropping out of college; as the first member of her family to even be able to attend college, her lyrics speak of her feelings of failure, while the chorus, singing peacefully in Spanish, is just happy to see her back home. The way Nina observes her childhood self throughout the song is one of those fantastic stylistic touches that just works perfectly.
3. In the Heights
In the Heights' title number must have felt revelatory seeing it on Broadway back in 2008, before Lin-Manuel Miranda became a household name and back when his signature blend of Latin music, rap and show tunes was something entirely new. Listening to it post-Hamilton, it's easy to respond to the music by comparing it to Hamilton, but "In the Heights" still does a great job setting up both the characters and the show's joyous presentation of mundane, dissatisfied life. In the movie, the scene also perfectly sets up the film's heightened fantasy style. And to add to the fun, the shot of Usnavi staring at the dancers through the bodega window might be the best of the year.
2. 96,000
It's unlikely most of this year's big blockbuster action scenes will be able to match the sheer spectacle, excitement and fun of "96,000," in which the whole neighborhood dreams about what they'll do if they get the winning lottery ticket. It starts with four friends rapping about what they'd do with $96,000, accompanied by animated effects, before arriving at the main setpiece: a pool where it looks like there could be 96,000 dancers. Even if you have no interest in rewatching In the Heights as a whole, the sheer visual and musical spectacle of this scene demands to be watched multiple times.
1. Paciencia y Fe
"Paciencia y Fe," a song reworked in the movie to become Abuela Claudia's dying dream during the blackout, is the best scene in all of In the Heights. Working simultaneously as an emotionally powerful solo musical number and striking ensemble dance number, this sequence talks about the struggles the beloved Abuela faced growing up poor in Cuba and immigrating to America, presenting an end-of-life crisis of faith about whether or not it was all worth it. In both its style and emotional depth, this sequence is unlike anything else in the movie.
Directed by Jon M. Chu and based on the musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda, In the Heights stars Anthony Ramos, Corey Hawkins, Leslie Grace, Melissa Berrera, Olga Merediz, Jimmy Smits, Gregory Diaz IV, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Stephanie Beatriz, Dascha Polanco and more. The film is currently in theaters and streaming on HBO Max.