Once (Carney, 2007)

[DavidSeven]

Because it deserves its own thread on this forum too:

I'm not sure that John Carney's Once is an objectively great film. After all, the aesthetic is mostly uninteresting; the ideas are a bit basic, and the film consists of more music than narrative. The most common criticism of the film has to be that one has to appreciate the film's music to appreciate the overall work. That's probably true. However, can we really use that as an objective knock against the film? Wouldn't that be the same as saying one has to appreciate the photography of Citizen Kane to appreciate the whole thing? In film criticism, we seem to describe visual style with objective language all the time while film music is rarely spoken of in those terms. Perhaps it does not make sense to judge music without accounting for personal taste, but the same has to be true for many other aspects of film. I may not know if the music in Once is objectively good music, but I do know that I enjoyed the heck out of it, and I suppose that's all that matters.

While the music obviously plays a huge role in the in its success, it would be incorrect to say that this is the only thing the film does right. Once goes from great music to great cinema in its moments. Describing a musical as having pitch perfect scenes may be disgustingly cheesy, but for this film, it is unavoidable. Typically, musicals are pure fantasy both in their musical sequences and their overall narrative. Carney pairs his stripped down musical numbers with scenes that feel equally true to life. I've seen few scenes that have felt as uncomfortably realistic as a sleepover rejection shown early in the film. Later, there is a simply remarkable goodbye scene between father and son that is just stunning in how each beat is handled so perfectly. The scene is so subdued, yet so quietly devastating. It's scenes like these that truly make the film. Even when the music takes center stage, it's the developing moments before the finished songs that really grabs us. It may be true that the film has more than its share of objective flaws, but from scene to scene, there are so many perfectly realized moments. These moments will linger much longer than minor grievances will. As imperfect as it may be, I have little doubt that Once will remain perfect in my mind for a long time to come.

[****]

[megladon8]

Great review, DS.

I have this one coming to me in the mail within the next few days - I'm really looking forward to it.

[DavidSeven]

Great review, DS.

I have this one coming to me in the mail within the next few days - I'm really looking forward to it.

I'm not really sure why, but I think you'll love this one. Just a feeling.

[megladon8]

I'm not really sure why, but I think you'll love this one. Just a feeling.

I hope so

I downloaded the album "The Swell Season" by Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova.

From what I've read, the film is like a cinematic representation of this music...so yeh, I'm sure I'll love it, because I've been listening to this album almost non-stop.

[transmogrifier]

After a second viewing...my opinion doesn't change much. Good music, great chemistry between the leads, but slight and narratively unambitious. The director admits the film is about a guy getting a push from a girl to do stuff with his life, and his great idea to depict this is...to have the girl come out and tell him that he should go, start his life, move on etc. What price subtlety?

[Mysterious Dude]

I saw this movie right after participating in the 24 Hour film festival, and the way they produce the album reminded me a lot of independent filmmaking. I especially love, for some reason, the scene when she haggles over the price of the studio.

[DavidSeven]

After a second viewing...my opinion doesn't change much. Good music, great chemistry between the leads, but slight and narratively unambitious. The director admits the film is about a guy getting a push from a girl to do stuff with his life, and his great idea to depict this is...to have the girl come out and tell him that he should go, start his life, move on etc. What price subtlety?

I wouldn't necessarily disagree with this, but I think the film's strong attributes overcome these shortcomings. The majority of the scenes are just handled so well, and there's enough originality here to keep it from being an easily forgotten piece.

I especially love, for some reason, the scene when she haggles over the price of the studio.

Really liked this scene as well.

[ledfloyd]

one of the best movies of the year.

[megladon8]

So I just finished it.

It's 3:17AM. I am going to write a full review. Whether I will finish it tonight or not, I don't know, but I couldn't go to sleep without at least posting a couple of brief thoughts.

It was magical and moving. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova seemed born to play these roles.

The music was bittersweet and honest - which are two words which could be used to describe the entire film.

I'm still wiping a few tears from my eyes. Every single song was powerful and had its own unique strengths related to the story.

I am so, so glad I saw this before finishing my 2007 awards ballot.

Pretty much the only thing keeping me from giving it a 10 is my own principle not to give out 10's to first viewings.

[Kurosawa Fan]

After a second viewing...my opinion doesn't change much. Good music, great chemistry between the leads, but slight and narratively unambitious.

I agree with this completely. It was nice and romantic, and the two leads really impressed me, but I never felt as emotionally invested as I thought I should, and the word "slight" was the first word that popped into my head after it was over. I'm really surprised so many people fell in love with this film. It's certainly not bad, I quite enjoyed it, but it's far from one of the best films I've seen this year.

[Benny Profane]

I thought the long whiny sad-luck songs bring this to a screeching halt. I couldn't believe they played the same song twice in such a short time span. "Let's go to the beach and toss a frisbee! We're so whimsical!"

It sucked.

[Rowland]

This is the anti-Juno. I'd take it over Cody's movie any day.

[Spinal]

I am going to post my review for the record:

Once (Carney, 2006)

On the streets of Dublin, a man plays a guitar that has seen so much use that it looks as if it could collapse inward upon itself at any moment. Initially, he seems like just another wannabe folkie, the kind that might be likely to irritate you in the later hours of a good party. Most of us would simply walk on by, catching a few seconds of his tune and this nothing more about him. However, because this is a film, we are forced to pay attention, to listen to his music unfold and build towards an impressive crescendo. Skepticism turns to empathy and admiration as we observe the investment the man has in his music, the sincerity and passion that he pours into his performance. The reception he receives on the street is less than enthusiastic. Only one person, a young Czech woman has stopped to appreciate his talents. Despite her praise, he is somewhat disheartened when the she is much more excited to discover that he is a vacuum-repairman by day and might possibly be able to aid her with a problem Hoover.

After this adorable meeting, you probably think that you know how the rest of the film will likely unfold. Chances are though, that you are wrong. As it turns out, she is a gifted musician as well. Although she cannot afford a piano of her own, she enjoys playing one of the display models in the local shop. He listens to her play and soon they are playing one of his songs together. The moment is magical and in his mind, he sees her as the cure for his loneliness and depression. He pushes – too hard – for a tangible connection. She, on the other hand, is in no mood (or perhaps no position) to rush into a whimsical romance. Still, she sees a way to assist him and perhaps even give him the sense of fulfillment and self-worth that he has been craving, albeit in a different way that he may have initially desired.

Often romantic comedies can seem to be written by people whose ideas about male-female relationships and courting never evolved beyond their high school prom. Their hijinks typically revolve around someone who frets over whether or not they will be able to find “the one”. And because they believe that there is one and only one person that will fill their lives with happiness, any amount of immature, selfish, idiotic behavior is justified in pursuit of their end goal. Once is a film that truly understands that attraction between intelligent men and women is really much more complicated than that. The truth is that it is possible to meet people throughout our lives that excite us and help elevate us in satisfying ways. This is a film in which two adults attracted to each other have to make grown-up decisions and not simply follow their impulses. Ultimately, writer/director John Carney leaves his characters with fates that fall well short of their wildest dreams. And yet, this does not mean, on the other hand, that he drags them through misery and despair. Instead they find themselves with unexpected rewards because each has mindful of the needs of the other. Together, they exemplify the idea that true love is in helping the beloved to be the most happy, the most fulfilled, the most satisfied that they can be.

[****]

[Kurosawa Fan]

"Let's go to the beach and toss a frisbee! We're so whimsical!"

This was the only scene in the film I outright didn't care for. It felt very forced.

[Yxklyx]

Once was just meh to me.

[Spinal]

I'm glad to have seen this film not knowing anything about it beforehand.

[Benny Profane]

I'm glad to have seen this film not knowing anything about it beforehand.

Same here. I actually saw it 3 weeks before it was released.

[Benny Profane]

By "same here" I meant I didn't know anything about it, not the "glad to have seen it" part.

hehe.

[Bosco B Thug]

This is the anti-Juno. I'd take it over Cody's movie any day.

So, if everyone can perhaps forget the embarrasing dialogue, you can at least give, surely, that Once's straight-and-narrow romance of maturity does not aim to achieve the same degree of emotional complexity and ambiguity of Juno's story of immaturity.

I mean, for a precocious darling who gives a bunch of stupid one-liners, Juno's quite a downer.

Filmmaking/aesthetic-wise, I'd say they're on the same level of serviceable but not quite risk-taking.

So... Juno > Once.

[Spinal]

Good god no.

[Rowland]

So, if everyone can perhaps forget the embarrasing dialogue, you can at least give, surely, that Once's straight-and-narrow romance of maturity does not aim to achieve the same degree of emotional complexity and ambiguity of Juno's story of immaturity.

I mean, for a precocious darling who gives a bunch of stupid one-liners, Juno's quite a downer.

Filmmaking/aesthetic-wise, I'd say they're on the same level of serviceable but not quite risk-taking.

So... Juno > Once.

Your reasoning doesn't work for me. Once feels natural and is genuinely moving. It knows exactly what it wants to do and accomplishes it with bracing restraint and honesty. Juno feels sitcomishly forced from beginning to end and left me faintly annoyed. It dips its toe in this and that, failing to capitalize on any particular thematic tangent. So... no.

Labeling Once the anti-Juno was somewhat arbitrary though, I'll admit. That title probably belongs to Broken English.

[Bosco B Thug]

Your reasoning doesn't work for me. Once feels natural and is genuinely moving. It knows exactly what it wants to do and accomplishes it with bracing restraint and honesty. Juno feels sitcomishly forced from beginning to end and left me faintly annoyed. It dips its toe in this and that, failing to capitalize on any particular thematic tangent. So... no.

Labeling Once the anti-Juno was somewhat arbitrary though, I'll admit. That title probably belongs to Broken English.

I suppose Once is just something that needs to hit you. Once was all those things you mentioned, but for me, not to any impressive degree. The scene with the woman walking through the streets after getting batteries finally broke the film from its rote attentions and created a uniquely perceptive scene, but for every great moment, there's the beach scene or that scene about the guy's old girlfriend where it plays out a full song just to tell us, "He was really attached to her." Juno's constantly juggling the interplay of its two very imperfect couples.

As for defending Juno in a Once thread... I stand by defending Juno as being as emotionally honest as Once behind all the contrived dialogue. Contrived forced wit doesn't automatically equal contrived character work. There is attention to consistency in its characters. Juno's father is a noticeably sanitized character (but then so is Once's father character - but who's to say fathers aren't this accepting and understanding in real life?)... but as I've mentioned, I found Juno a rather brooding, heavy presence, as is Bateman's. Garner's is too, though they drop the ball with her at the end. None of Once's characters are as interesting, even if they are charming and pleasant.

Haha, muddled, rambling thoughts, but there ya go.

[Rowland]

You seem to be making a leap from "brooding, heavy presence" (which I think is overstating it a bit) to interesting/complex/ambiguous that I don't feel is justified, let alone that I suspect any perceived ambiguity in the characters is the result of tonally inconsistent writing. There are no characters in Juno that strike me as organic. The closest is the running tic-tac kid, and that's mostly because of Cera's acting.

But enough, this is a Once thread, and I'm too tired of trying to convince myself I'm wrong through reading positive Juno reviews to want to discuss it.

[Duncan]

Saw it last night. Liked it. I thought the songs went on for too long occasionally. Especially when he's watching/scoring the video of his ex. I guess the frisbee scene did feel a bit forced. Still, I agree mostly with Spinal's review. I just wish I had been a little more attached to the characters, I suppose.

[lovejuice]

Especially when he's watching/scoring the video of his ex. I guess the frisbee scene did feel a bit forced.

agree with your first sentence. it's a weird moment. at the same time, kinda refreshing in its awkwardness. i don't have a problem with the frisbee scene since i love that song so so sooo much.