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Written and directed by John Carney;
director of photography, Tim Fleming; edited by Paul Mullen; music by
Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova; production designer, Tamara Conboy;
produced by Martina Niland; released by Fox Searchlight Pictures.
88 minutes. Rated
R for some harsh language. But come on... give me a
break.
STARRING:
Glen Hansard (the Guy) and Marketa Irglova (the Girl).
On the streets of Dublin, a guitar-wielding singer/songwriter (Glen
Hansard, lead singer of The Frames) is just trying to make a living,
belting out favorites for the passers-by. But at night, he performs
powerful songs of his own, tearing open his own broken heart for anyone
who will listen. In the opening scene of John
Carney's film Once, that's exactly what this singer is doing --
singing as if his life depends on it. It takes about 30 seconds, and the
audience is riveted by his intensity and passion. And a couple of
minutes later, the singer finds himself in an unexpectedly hilarious
chase to recover the tools of his trade.
It's one of the fundamental rules of great
storytelling -- make us care about, and like, your main character, rough
edges and all. And Carney does that effortlessly. This engaging,
down-on-his-luck performer, whose name is never revealed, and who
happens to have a day job as a vacuum-cleaner repairman, is not likely
to make it big anytime soon. But no matter... he's wins our hearts, and
we'll follow him anyway. Against all odds,
it happens again a few minutes later. Enter
"the Girl" (Markéta Irglová, a
Czech actress who should have no trouble finding roles elsewhere).
She's a spirited young lass who happens upon "the Guy" during one of his
curbsde performances. She likes his style, and has something of her own to add to the
musical mix. And who
would have guessed? She's got a broken vacuum cleaner… and he repairs
them!
Date movies don't get more romantic and inspiring than Once.
It's an unsentimental story of new love, creative collaboration, and
tough reality-checks. As "Guy" and "Girl" — we never learn their names —
strike sparks that rise into fiery emo-rock performances, we're rooting
for them all the way. Will they make a hit record? Will they break loose
from their troubling past relationships and run away together?
In scenes so naturalistic that they seem more real
than "reality TV," we're drawn into jam sessions, late-night
heart-to-heart conversations, family dinners, studio recording sessions,
and lonely nights while the lovebirds wonder where this is all going to
lead. Whatever you think of the conclusion, you'll be recommending this
simple, near-perfect little
gem to all of your friends, whether they like
musicals or not. Once steers clear of the stagy spectacle we
associate with big screen musicals — you'll never hear this movie
compared to Hairspray — and goes straight for the heart with
subtlety and realism. The songs have contagious
melodies, and although a couple of them are overused by the end of the
movie, the singers convince us that they're being sung, yes, from the
heart... but also from personal histories.
And those histories have something to offer. This
isn't a love story about hormones and frivolous misunderstandings. It's
about being real, sharp edges and all, and finding someone who will
listen and understand that. It's about bonding through honesty and
trust. And it is bold enough to suggest that art can be the language
through which we see each other best. After it's over, you'll have a hard time shaking off the notion
that Guy and Girl are still out there, somewhere, jamming up a storm.
And by the end of the year, Once will be the movie doomed to lose
at the Oscars but destined to live on in everyone's hearts. |
