Make music, not love - Once Reviews

In my years of walking out of dark rooms having just experienced events and characters not myself, there have been many occasions that I have walked out with a smile on my face, the images burned in my memory and even a song in my heart. The last time it happened for me was United 93, where I was speechless hours after the show was over. And yet, coming out of this tiny music drama called Once, I felt something more profound. As to what that feeling is, I honestly can't say. Once is about a man and a woman, neither with a name but played by Glen Hasnard and Marketa Irglova respectively. The man is a street musician/vacuum repairman. She is a flower girl who finds him wailing away at one of his original songs one night, intrigued by his music. She's a pianist herself. The next day, she takes him to a music shop and one thing leads to another and...they duet in one of most powerful musical moments in the history of the movies. At first, they're awkward and out of sync. But they eventually not only match notes, but also turn in the ballad "Falling Slowly" (remember that song, you're going to want to find it after you're out of the movie). They start a friendship that he wants to see blossom, but she has reasons not to that I'd rather die than to expose. But as they find themselves sharing music, playing together, and sharing the songs of their hearts, they start a romance that is beyond sex, possibly beyond the limits of physical love. It eventually comes down to a choice of moving on that both characters have to face. He obviously has the talent to become more than he is. She can join him, but that would be turning her back on other things more important to her. The ending is pitch-perfect in its sad joyousness. But this is a movie that's not about the ending; instead it focuses on the journey these two souls take. Once is a very low-budget feature that feels shot on a low-end digital camera, more interested in the music than the images captured. The film is an extension of the songs sung. The songs are an extension of the joys, the fears, and the anticipation of things to come. The story could be described in terms of other movies by lazier moviegoers. To be honest, I wonder why musicians opt for music documentaries for this style of narrative-driven showcase of songs. And like Once, the songs don't necessarily have to follow the story, as long as the tones of the music and the movie match. And let's talk about these songs just a little more. Not since Almost Famous has a soundtrack really been vital to a film or have left an imprint on your soul. Yes, the music is of the folk-pop persuasion very popular in the UK, as Ireland is where the story takes place. I lost count of all the times I was left tapping my feet to the rhythm and letting the music just take me away from my seat and away from the dark. But music can only do so much. As a fellow critic once said "Why should I see this movie when I can just get the soundtrack?" In Once, the reason is the beautifully simple story with complex emotions. It's in the splendid rapport that Mr. Hasnard and Ms. Irglova have. Considering that Mr. Hasnard is in fact not an actor, but a lead for the band The Frames, he shows a range of emotions I believe worthy of Oscar consideration. Ms. Irglova also doesn't have extensive acting work, and yet she glows with a radiance that makes us fall in love with her every time she comes onscreen. Director John Carney is new, and yet his simple approach to the material is the right move. There's no need for tricky camera work (I don't think he even had the budget for such things to begin with) and that the real fireworks are the music and the characters. In fact, I'm thinking he might be the pioneer of a new genre of narrative-driven musical dramas. I'd love to see what he would do on his next film. All in all, Once is a film that doesn't ask you to love it, but you'll find yourself falling head over heels without even thinking twice. It's too earnest, too sweet, too understanding of human nature to be cynical or pandering. It might not give us the ending we want, but it gives us the one we know is best. And who knows, the music has never left the movie. And where there's music, there's magic more powerful than sex could ever penetrate.