Plot summary (story synopsis):
Ming (Eddie Peng) and Tian (Shawn Dou) are rookie professional race cyclists. They join the Radiant team where Ji-won (Si Won Choi) is the lead racer. Ming and Tian fall for the same girl - fellow cyclist Shiyao (Wang Luodan). Shiyao chooses Ming but Ming is unfaithful to her and Tian steps in to pick up the slack. But Tian has problems of his own.
After various successes and defeats, Ming and Tian end up as rivals on different teams and suffer career setbacks. Finally, Ming and Tian team up again and race against Ji-won.
***
To the Fore is a crowd-pleaser. Following the Simpson-Bruckheimer blockbuster formula of action (racing) for the guys and romance for the girls, To the Fore delivers as a date movie. It is 70 percent hardcore cycling pseudo-documentary and 30 percent drama/love triangle.
Writer/director Dante Lam (with co-writers Silver Hau and Fung Lam) shows good judgment by starting off the movie with a quick series of exciting bicycle races, slowly easing in the relationship drama later on. The beautifully-filmed races grab our attention within the first few minutes and helps to establish the authenticity of the movie's world and its characters.
The races aren't just fancy camerawork either. The tactics, training and equipment are shown in detail, lending interest and believability to the proceedings. The race settings are stunning - mountain roads, desert, city streets, indoor and outdoor velodromes. This is the kind of movie you can rewatch in the background on your second PC monitor with the sound turned down low, while you work on your main monitor.
Even when the drama gets started, the scenes are kept short and are inserted in between even more bicycle races, so the movie never bogs down. An example of good storytelling judgment - there's a cute scene where Ming and Tian compete by balancing on bicycles without moving. They bet dinner over who falls first, then the movie cuts away to the next scene and doesn't bother to show who won. Quick and to the point - the point is their friendly but still real rivalry, not who won.
There's also some good-natured (not mean) slapstick humor, which works. The crowd in my theater was happily chuckling along.
I almost gave this movie a miss but was persuaded by the cycling scenes in the movie trailer. The trailer doesn't lie. The movie really does look this good. Given today's improved camera mounts, it actually looks better than director Peter Yates's (Bullitt) classic Breaking Away from 1979. To the Fore's script is more formulaic than Steve Tesich's quirky coming-of-age script for Breaking Away, but it still entertains.
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romance. Show all posts
2015-08-07
2015-02-22
Triumph in the Skies (2015)
Entrepreneur/pilot Branson (Louis Koo) has just taken over Skylette Airlines. (Unbelievably) he has the time to fly one of its regular commercial routes, where he bumps into old flame Cassie (Charmaine Sheh) who is a flight attendant on his flight. They continue to bump into each other on subsequent flights and they rekindle their old romance. But will Cassie be able to trust him after he had dumped her in the past?
Meanwhile, Branson tasks his trusted pilot friend, Captain Samuel Tong (Francis Ng), to be the technical consultant for a music video advertising Skylette. The music video stars pop-star TM (real-life pop-star and experienced actress Sammi Cheng). The odd couple find themselves slowly falling for each other.
There's also former Skylette pilot Captain Jayden Koo (Julian Cheung), who now flies private business jets. He meets the lively, care-free, slutty Kika (Amber Kuo) who is hiding a dark secret.
***
Triumph in the Skies is a visually gorgeous but lightweight romance/drama. It's a good way to pass your time but it carries little emotional punch. It's like watching a series of beautiful music videos with adult-oriented pop songs.
It's based on a TVB Hong Kong TV series, which I haven't watched, so I won't be drawing any comparisons with the TV series.
In the movie, nothing much happens. Unlike real show-don't-tell movies like Lost in Translation, Triumph's laid-back style isn't engaging because it's mainly repetition. The three couples go through the same motions over and over again, so we don't learn anything new with each interaction.
The movie is basically an anthology of three short films, only loosely linked together by the Skylette Airline backstory. So you have one third the screen time for each couple, compared to a normal feature. Add the repetitive interactions and you inevitably get a shallow understanding of the characters.
Still, it's one of the most beautiful movies I've seen in a while. Jason Kwan's (The Last Tycoon) cinematography is world-class. A mixture of prime-lens blurred-out-backgrounds, saturated colors and even old-school tobacco graduated filters for the outdoor scenery. Jackie Chan needs to grab this guy for his next movie. The songs aren't too bad either and the six leads look good on screen. If that's good enough for you (and it is for me), by all means go enjoy yourself.
Aside from the visuals, what struck me was how at ease director Wilson Yip (Ip Man) and writer/director Matt Chow were with the England setting of the movie. Instead of showing cliched English landmarks (one exception being the White Cliffs of Dover); they chose quirky, bohemian, hipster locations.
Maybe I'm reading too much into this but I think that shows an insider's cosmopolitan familiarity with England. Sure, they probably used local English location scouts, but the decision to avoid tourist staples must have come from them. They aren't The Jeffersons, needing to show off Chinese wealth ("look ma, we're shooting a movie in front of Buckingham Palace!"). They are comfortable in their own skin, not needing any external validation or token White actors (cough, Jackie Chan, cough). Just like Taiwan's "Cafe. Waiting. Love," this makes me feel that Triumph shows how much some Hong Kong filmmakers grok Western/global culture, consider it their own. They aren't swa koos.
No matter how rich or well-traveled Jackie Chan is, he'll always be a working class hero, his movies lacking the effortless yuppie sensibility of movies such as this.
2014-10-25
Laggies (2014)
One day, Anthony proposes to her. Thrown for a loop by this unexpected development (as well as seeing her dad make out with another woman), she ends up hiding from Anthony and her friends. She crashes with Annika (Chloe Grace Moretz) - a teenage girl that she had just met - to get away from her regular life and get her head together.
Annika's single dad Craig (Sam Rockwell) is exasperated by his uninvited guest but soon grows to enjoy the company of the free-spirited Megan. A week passes and Megan has to return to Anthony and her regular life.
***
Laggies is Reality Bites meets Lost in Translation, a movie for today's directionless millenials who are drifting in their career and personal life. Despite its roster of mainstream stars, Laggies is an indie film from indie director Lynn Shelton (it premiered at Sundance 2014) and freshman writer Andrea Seigel.
The movie's trailer highlights the comedic bits, and emphasizes Keira Knightley's scenes with Chloe Grace Moretz and Sam Rockwell. But this is more a light drama with Keira Knightley front and center - Moretz, like Sam Rockwell, plays a supporting character.
And it works, though in an art-film kind of way. We enjoy the journey as we watch Megan bumble through her life and has minor misadventures. But this is the extreme show-don't-tell storytelling technique of Lost in Translation - effective if you're a movie buff, but which will cause the general public to complain, But nothing happens!
An interesting pattern is beginning to emerge from Keira Knigtley's movie choices. Laggies has the same feel (though very different plot) from Begin Again and Seeking a Friend for the End of the World. It's a combination of light romance, light drama and light comedy. All done in a simple, intimate, upper middle-class setting.
Laggies seems to the kind of movie that Keira Knightley makes for fun, in between paycheck blockbusters such as Pirates of the Caribbean and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit. I'm still not big fan of hers, but considering her track record in choosing scripts, I'll be looking out for her movies.
2014-10-03
Beauty and the Beast / La belle et la bête (2014)
On his way out he plucks a rose for his favorite daughter Belle (Léa Seydoux - Midnight in Paris, Blue is the Warmest Color, Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol). This enrages his hidden benefactor, the hideous Beast (Vincent Cassel - Brotherhood of the Wolf, Black Swan) because while all the other items were gifts to Le marchand, the rose was not.
To pay for his crime of stealing the rose, the Beast forces Le marchand to be a captive in the castle. Loyal Belle takes his place instead. At first, Belle fears the monstrous-looking beast, but begins to get used to life in the ruined castle. She also has dreams of the castle's past, showing how the Beast - originally a prince - came to be cursed to become a monster.
Belle's debt-ridden brother Maxime (Nicolas Gob) notices the large jewel Belle brought with her on her one visit home. He leads his thuggish creditors to the castle, to loot the place.
***
Beauty and the Beast follows the standard fairytale too closely. In addition, there are cute dogs and two giant stone robots/monsters, but that's not enough to make the story interesting.
French director Christophe Gans has directed only 4 feature films over the past 20 years. But 3 of them - Crying Freeman, Brotherhood of the Wolf, and Silent Hill - have been above-average movies with engaging storylines and gorgeous visuals.
Beauty and the Beast does have beautiful visuals - the enormous ruined castle, the menacing forest. Even Belle's crude backyard garden looks picture-perfect. But the lack of a strong story (from Gans and co-writer Sandra Vo-Anh) is fatal.
Catherine Hardwicke's Red Riding Hood was only loosely based on the old fairytale. She built an entirely different story on top of it. Gans should have done the same.
Gans doesn't even bother to explore the ramifications of his unambitious story. The Beast seems to have been made immortal by the spell. Does breaking the spell make him mortal again? Wouldn't that suck? Does the magical healing pool still work? Why not open it up to the public? Imagine the impact.
Lea Seydoux doesn't save the movie. She wears beautiful gowns, but actually looks more attractive in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol, and more charming in Midnight in Paris. (Despite having small parts in both movies.) Her character is one-dimensional and her love for the Beast is not developed enough to be believable. Vincent Cassel can't do much either with a weak script and from behind a wall of special effects.
Gans's other, better, movies were violent action/adventure adult entertainment. He should stay away from PG-13 Disney material. Or get Luc Besson to help him with scripts. Maybe both.
2014-09-12
Café. Waiting. Love (2014)
Plot summary (story synopsis): University freshman Si-Ying (Vivian Sung) works at a cafe. She encounters various quirky personalities including the cafe's depressed owner (former pop star Vivian Chow), stern barista Abusi (Megan Lai), legendary university prankster A-Tuo (Bruce Lu-Si Bu), handsome flirt Zeyu (Marcus Chang) and former actor Brother Bao (Lee Luo).
***
"Café. Waiting. Love" is a sweet, whimsical romantic comedy. It's more a series of vignettes or multiple subplots - in the parochial style of Amelie - than a conventional plot-driven movie.
But it works. The adorable Vivian Sung deftly carries the movie. She's feisty, cute and girl-next-door approachable, not too glamorous (that would be Vivian Chow). Bruce Lu-Si Bu doesn't have quite the same impact - his goofy persona isn't particularly endearing or impressive. And that's okay. This is Vivian Sung's show and she is up to the task.
The other actors stack up pretty well. Megan Lai is striking in her small but impactful role as the unsmiling ace barista who concocts weird, customized drinks for customers. Vivian Chow is surprisingly effective as the sad cafe owner, pining after her dead lover (she seemed like a bubblehead when she was a pop star).
Written (novel and script) by young (born 1978) Taiwanese author Giddens Ko (You Are the Apple of My Eye), this is the kind of hip and stylish movie that makes you believe in an international youth culture. It's the world of 1970's TV's Big Blue Marble (gawd, I'm old) or Thomas Friedman's Flat World.
A world where urbanites all over the world share the same kumbaya liberal values and Starbucks tastes, but retain a few of their own cute cultural idiosyncrasies (Si-Ying's roommate practices Iron Head Kung-fu, by repeatedly bashing her head with a brick). It's a world many of us want to believe in. But looking at today's headlines, would be foolish to believe exists outside a thin demographic of middle-class, westernized societies.
I'm not saying that the movie consciously pushes this ideology. I'm saying that writer Giddens Ko and first-time director Chin-Lin Chiang are naturally citizens of the world. "Café. Waiting. Love" is a fun and lightweight movie that makes no demands on an international audience, because its worldview is a westernized worldview that today passes for international culture. And there's nothing wrong with that - both being lightweight and having a westernized worldview.
I'm a story guy and I normally look at movies from a storytelling perspective. But I was really struck by the modern, almost hipster, sensibility of this movie. It's a world away from Jackie Chan, Donnie Yen, Tsui Hark, Wong Jing, Johnnie To and Wong Kar Wai.
I do have a few gripes. The magical roast sausages are a bridge too far (and are unnecessary) but they hardly mar this charming little movie. For quirky magic, the underrated Simply Irresistible (1999, Sarah Michelle Gellar) is much better.
However, considering how crude and clueless contemporary Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China movies can be; this movie is a treat. There's more to Chinese cinema than martial arts and costumed, historical dramas.
***
"Café. Waiting. Love" is a sweet, whimsical romantic comedy. It's more a series of vignettes or multiple subplots - in the parochial style of Amelie - than a conventional plot-driven movie.
But it works. The adorable Vivian Sung deftly carries the movie. She's feisty, cute and girl-next-door approachable, not too glamorous (that would be Vivian Chow). Bruce Lu-Si Bu doesn't have quite the same impact - his goofy persona isn't particularly endearing or impressive. And that's okay. This is Vivian Sung's show and she is up to the task.
The other actors stack up pretty well. Megan Lai is striking in her small but impactful role as the unsmiling ace barista who concocts weird, customized drinks for customers. Vivian Chow is surprisingly effective as the sad cafe owner, pining after her dead lover (she seemed like a bubblehead when she was a pop star).
Written (novel and script) by young (born 1978) Taiwanese author Giddens Ko (You Are the Apple of My Eye), this is the kind of hip and stylish movie that makes you believe in an international youth culture. It's the world of 1970's TV's Big Blue Marble (gawd, I'm old) or Thomas Friedman's Flat World.
A world where urbanites all over the world share the same kumbaya liberal values and Starbucks tastes, but retain a few of their own cute cultural idiosyncrasies (Si-Ying's roommate practices Iron Head Kung-fu, by repeatedly bashing her head with a brick). It's a world many of us want to believe in. But looking at today's headlines, would be foolish to believe exists outside a thin demographic of middle-class, westernized societies.
I'm not saying that the movie consciously pushes this ideology. I'm saying that writer Giddens Ko and first-time director Chin-Lin Chiang are naturally citizens of the world. "Café. Waiting. Love" is a fun and lightweight movie that makes no demands on an international audience, because its worldview is a westernized worldview that today passes for international culture. And there's nothing wrong with that - both being lightweight and having a westernized worldview.
I'm a story guy and I normally look at movies from a storytelling perspective. But I was really struck by the modern, almost hipster, sensibility of this movie. It's a world away from Jackie Chan, Donnie Yen, Tsui Hark, Wong Jing, Johnnie To and Wong Kar Wai.
I do have a few gripes. The magical roast sausages are a bridge too far (and are unnecessary) but they hardly mar this charming little movie. For quirky magic, the underrated Simply Irresistible (1999, Sarah Michelle Gellar) is much better.
However, considering how crude and clueless contemporary Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China movies can be; this movie is a treat. There's more to Chinese cinema than martial arts and costumed, historical dramas.
2014-08-03
The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom (2014)
Jade Raksha is part of the gang of irregulars that holds Lunar Fort, a small but strategic border outpost that controls a mountainous trail between the Han (Chinese) and Jin armies.
Traitorous general Jin Duyi (Vincent Zhao) kills the Governor (who is also Zhuo Yihang's grandfather) during a skirmish with Jade Raksha, and frames her for the murder.
Meanwhile, the red pills turn out to be poisonous and Zhuo Yihang is blamed for the emperor's death. He ends up in Lunar Fort, where he uses his medicinal skills to stop a typhoid outbreak, furthering his friendship with Jade Raksha along the way.
Some political intrigues later, Jin Duyi takes over Lunar Fort by treachery and holds Zhuo Yihang prisoner. Jade Raksha comes to his rescue but is captured too. There is a spell she can cast to break free, but only at a terrible personal cost.
***
Chinese movies are like a box of chocolates. With WHWLK, what you get is an odd mix of political intrigue, action-adventure and romance. The first two thirds of the movie is a disjointed mix of events that aren't really interesting, convincing, or integrated well with each other.
It's only in the third act, the fight at Lunar Fort, that the movie finally gets into gear. But it's too little, too late. It doesn't help that Lunar Fort itself, looks like a cheap stage set.
There are some interesting details of imperial Chinese customs - the red pills, "top scholar cookies" from the chief eunuch. But without an engrossing plot, these stand out more as curiosities and don't really make you feel like you are stepping into ancient China.
The wirework flying kung fu and slashing sword fights are okay, I guess. Quite standard, not too shabby, but not particularly outstanding either. There are battle scenes with hundreds of armored infantry, that do help to establish an epic scope, but what we are really interested in is the relationship between Zhuo Yihang and Jade Raksha, and there's precious little of that.
Acting is decent, given the limitations of the script. I'm not a Fan Bing Bing fan but she looks pretty good here.
Most reviewers seem to prefer Ronny Yu's 1993 version, The Bride With White Hair, which starred Brigitte Lin and Leslie Cheung. I haven't seen that movie.
If you want to watch a Chinese kung fu historical romance, I'd suggest 2012's Painted Skin: The Resurrection, instead. (http://pisang-movie-recommendations.blogspot.com/2012/07/painted-skin-resurrection-2012.html)
2014-07-10
Walking on Sunshine (2014)
Plot summary (story synopsis): During a stay in an Italian beach resort, Englishwoman Maddie (Annabel Scholey) falls in love with local Italian hunk Raf (Giulio Berruti) and decides to marry him after a whirlwind 5 week romance.
Her sister Taylor (Hannah Arterton) flies in for the wedding, only to find out that Raf is the man that she dumped three years ago, leaving Italy to return to England in order to get a university education.
Raf and Taylor agree to keep their past a secret from Maddie, but their attraction for each other is still there. Meanwhile, Maddie's bad-boy ex, Doug (Greg Wise) makes a surprise visit to try and win her back.
***
Walking on Sunshine is a fun, light musical-romance-comedy with a rollicking 80s soundtrack. It lacks the star power of Mamma Mia! and Rock of Ages, but equals them in pop nostalgia and probably exceeds them in dance energy.
Directors Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini have previously directed two StreetDance movies. I have never heard of StreetDance before but I guess there's a lot of dancing in them.
There's certainly a lot of dancing in Sunshine, with an entire airport lobby breaking out into song (Madonna's Holiday) and dance within the first few minutes of the opening of the movie. If you're too young to remember, this is classic 1980s music video-style.
There was a group of schoolgirls sitting behind me in the theater and they were giggling and squealing throughout the whole movie. So you don't have to be an old codger to enjoy the movie, but you might miss a few 1980s references.
The cast of unknowns acquit themselves well. Hannah Arterton has a Piper Perabo charm about her, while Giulio Berruti looks like a male model. It sounds like the actors sing their own songs, but I can't be sure. They aren't spectacular singers, but they are good enough. There is some professional support from Leona Lewis (who sang I See You in Avatar) who plays Elena, one of Taylor's friends. The best part? Pierce Brosnan doesn't sing in this movie.
Good use is made of the Italian setting, with the ancient stone buildings leaving the greatest impression. There's a spectacular mass tomato fight in a cobblestone alley, like the Running of the Bulls or Holi, only with tomatoes.
There's something special about the songs of the 1980s. Every generation thinks that about their music. I was a teenager during the 1980s so I'm probably biased, but unlike the music of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, 1980s music hasn't aged. Play one today and you could fool a teenager into thinking that it was a current hit.
However I can't help thinking that there are so many movies with 1980s pop/rock soundtracks now because the people who grew up in the 1980s are now movie directors, writers and producers. Or maybe they are just a middle-aged demographic ripe for milking money from. In 10 years, we'll be seeing a whole bunch of 1990s music movies. Hello Guns N' Roses.
The runtime of Walking on Sunshine is maybe 30% to 50% songs, so it's as much music as it is story. Which is great. If you're an eighties child, bring your kids to see it. If you're not, go see it and realize that once, your parents too were young.
Her sister Taylor (Hannah Arterton) flies in for the wedding, only to find out that Raf is the man that she dumped three years ago, leaving Italy to return to England in order to get a university education.
Raf and Taylor agree to keep their past a secret from Maddie, but their attraction for each other is still there. Meanwhile, Maddie's bad-boy ex, Doug (Greg Wise) makes a surprise visit to try and win her back.
***
Walking on Sunshine is a fun, light musical-romance-comedy with a rollicking 80s soundtrack. It lacks the star power of Mamma Mia! and Rock of Ages, but equals them in pop nostalgia and probably exceeds them in dance energy.
Directors Max Giwa and Dania Pasquini have previously directed two StreetDance movies. I have never heard of StreetDance before but I guess there's a lot of dancing in them.
There's certainly a lot of dancing in Sunshine, with an entire airport lobby breaking out into song (Madonna's Holiday) and dance within the first few minutes of the opening of the movie. If you're too young to remember, this is classic 1980s music video-style.
There was a group of schoolgirls sitting behind me in the theater and they were giggling and squealing throughout the whole movie. So you don't have to be an old codger to enjoy the movie, but you might miss a few 1980s references.
The cast of unknowns acquit themselves well. Hannah Arterton has a Piper Perabo charm about her, while Giulio Berruti looks like a male model. It sounds like the actors sing their own songs, but I can't be sure. They aren't spectacular singers, but they are good enough. There is some professional support from Leona Lewis (who sang I See You in Avatar) who plays Elena, one of Taylor's friends. The best part? Pierce Brosnan doesn't sing in this movie.
Good use is made of the Italian setting, with the ancient stone buildings leaving the greatest impression. There's a spectacular mass tomato fight in a cobblestone alley, like the Running of the Bulls or Holi, only with tomatoes.
There's something special about the songs of the 1980s. Every generation thinks that about their music. I was a teenager during the 1980s so I'm probably biased, but unlike the music of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, 1980s music hasn't aged. Play one today and you could fool a teenager into thinking that it was a current hit.
However I can't help thinking that there are so many movies with 1980s pop/rock soundtracks now because the people who grew up in the 1980s are now movie directors, writers and producers. Or maybe they are just a middle-aged demographic ripe for milking money from. In 10 years, we'll be seeing a whole bunch of 1990s music movies. Hello Guns N' Roses.
The runtime of Walking on Sunshine is maybe 30% to 50% songs, so it's as much music as it is story. Which is great. If you're an eighties child, bring your kids to see it. If you're not, go see it and realize that once, your parents too were young.
2014-07-03
Begin Again (2014)
Plot summary (story synopsis): Talented songwriter Greta (Keira Knightley - Pirates of the Caribbean, King Arthur, Atonement, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit) doesn't take her work seriously, preferring to live in the shadow of her famous singer boyfriend Dave (Adam Levine - Maroon 5's lead singer). They break up after she finds out that he had an affair.
Meanwhile, formerly-successful music producer Dan (Mark Ruffalo - Bruce Banner in The Avengers) is fired from the recording label that he started. He is divorced from Miriam (Catherine Keener - Being John Malkovich, Captain Phillips) and living in a rundown apartment.
He stumbles across Greta singing one of her songs in a bar and is impressed by her talent. He tries to sign her up, but his former boss Saul (Mos Def - 16 Blocks, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) back at his old label wants them to record a demo tape first.
Low on cash, Dan decides to use volunteer musicians, and record along New York's streets to make use of their ambient sound instead of renting a studio. Over the course of a few days, Dan and Greta get to know each other better as they record the demo album, roping in Dan's daughter Violet (Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit, Ender's Game, 3 Days to Kill) to play guitar.
***
Begin Again is an effective mix of Before Sunrise and The Commitments. It's a slow but entertaining show-don't-tell love story with some decent music, shot against the backdrop of the less glamorous part of New York. A part that isn't often seen in movies. We see the cosy backstreets New York, with the Empire State Building being the only major landmark shown.
The story sounds a lot like Once, writer/director John Carney's 2006 movie, which I haven't seen.
Mark Ruffalo is convincing as the down-and-out producer. Keira Knightley is even better as the sweet but tough, perceptive and talented songwriter. This is one of her best roles. I haven't been a fan in the past - she's competent, but there's something missing. However this movie might have changed my mind. The supporting cast, as might be expected from their past work, is excellent.
The chemistry between the two leads, works. John Carney's script allows them to believably get to know each other. Their interactions don't feel fake or forced. Most of it is low-key. There are a few dramatic moments but these aren't melodramatic or overwrought.
It's less "talkie" than Before Sunrise, closer to Lost in Translation's casual unhurried approach. It lacks Lost in Translation's mesmerizing dreamlike atmosphere but it's still a pleasant ride for the audience.
Like Before Sunrise, the ending isn't a conventionally romantic one and might not satisfy the general public that likes neat endings. Hopefully, like Before Sunrise, there will be a sequel too.
Meanwhile, formerly-successful music producer Dan (Mark Ruffalo - Bruce Banner in The Avengers) is fired from the recording label that he started. He is divorced from Miriam (Catherine Keener - Being John Malkovich, Captain Phillips) and living in a rundown apartment.
He stumbles across Greta singing one of her songs in a bar and is impressed by her talent. He tries to sign her up, but his former boss Saul (Mos Def - 16 Blocks, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) back at his old label wants them to record a demo tape first.
Low on cash, Dan decides to use volunteer musicians, and record along New York's streets to make use of their ambient sound instead of renting a studio. Over the course of a few days, Dan and Greta get to know each other better as they record the demo album, roping in Dan's daughter Violet (Hailee Steinfeld - True Grit, Ender's Game, 3 Days to Kill) to play guitar.
***
Begin Again is an effective mix of Before Sunrise and The Commitments. It's a slow but entertaining show-don't-tell love story with some decent music, shot against the backdrop of the less glamorous part of New York. A part that isn't often seen in movies. We see the cosy backstreets New York, with the Empire State Building being the only major landmark shown.
The story sounds a lot like Once, writer/director John Carney's 2006 movie, which I haven't seen.
Mark Ruffalo is convincing as the down-and-out producer. Keira Knightley is even better as the sweet but tough, perceptive and talented songwriter. This is one of her best roles. I haven't been a fan in the past - she's competent, but there's something missing. However this movie might have changed my mind. The supporting cast, as might be expected from their past work, is excellent.
The chemistry between the two leads, works. John Carney's script allows them to believably get to know each other. Their interactions don't feel fake or forced. Most of it is low-key. There are a few dramatic moments but these aren't melodramatic or overwrought.
It's less "talkie" than Before Sunrise, closer to Lost in Translation's casual unhurried approach. It lacks Lost in Translation's mesmerizing dreamlike atmosphere but it's still a pleasant ride for the audience.
Like Before Sunrise, the ending isn't a conventionally romantic one and might not satisfy the general public that likes neat endings. Hopefully, like Before Sunrise, there will be a sequel too.
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