Begin Again Reviews

Since I have a weak spot for Mark Ruffalo and Keira Knightley and since this movie seemed to have a decent reputation, I was really eager to check it out. Well, at first, it seemed to be really promising. Indeed, even though it is usually a rather annoying gimmick, I really liked how they displayed the different journeys made by both characterts until they meet each other. Furthermore, I really loved how they displayed the process of a music-business executive trying to figure out how to build up a song around the performance of an artist. So, the beginning was actually pretty good and, in my opinion, Ruffalo and Knightley were both convincing enough. Unfortunately, from the moment, they started to work together, the whole thing started to become less and less interesting. I mean, it wasn't only the fact that it became a really generic story of the discovery of a new artist, it was more the fact that it sometimes vastly contradicted the introduction, especially concerning Dan. Indeed, at first, they gave the viewer the impression that the guy has been washed-up for years, that he had little to no contact with his daughter for years as well but, eventually, you discover that it went on only for a rather short period of time. Furthermore, even though they started to display that it is obviously really difficult to succeed in the music business, suddenly, it became way too easy for them to deliver a full album with no financial support whatsoever. On top of that, even though the concept of recording outside was rather far-fetched. At least, it was an original idea but, unfortunately, the end-result sounded just way too polished and it was clearly not recorded outside at all. Anyway, to conclude, even though the whole thing turned out to be actually rather disappointing, I still liked it though and it is worth a look, especially if you like the genre. 

Great songs! Enjoyed the music! They really healed my heart! Would love to listen to the soundtrack again.

Adam Levine's ego and Mark Ruffalo's inability to play extensions of himself make this highly anticipated movie tough to love. Additionally, Keira Knightley, who I usually like, has no stage presence and I found little chemistry between any of the characters.

The music elements are nice, plus Hailee Steinfeld and Rob Morrow were nice supporting highlights.