An Irish modern-day romantic musical, this one took me quite by surprise actually. Saw this movie with absolutely NO expectations whatsoever, and the charm and the feel-good factor of it was simply amazing; you can't help but get lost in the simple, linear storyline as the story slowly unfolds, and you find yourself humming along to the uplifting academy-award winning soundtrack ( must make special mention of the numbers "Falling Slowly" and "When your mind's made up"). A nice, pleasant and delicate movie.
Very impressive and wonderfully natural performances by the actors. Glen Hansard has got quite some talent, he portrays a busker on the streets of Dublin, his voice literally hitting the right notes as it soars from one fantastic number to another, and Marketa Irglova complements him perfectly while she delivers a luminous performance playing the role of a Czech immigrant who later goes on to become the keyboardist in Glen's band. Although musicians first and actors second, in both the areas, Glen and Marketa acquit themselves well.
The blinking streetlights, the vacant shops, the dishevelled state of the bedroom, all go on to provide a poetic backdrop for the film's lengthy tracking-shots, epitomized in a sequence where Marketa walks all the way back home from the local hardware store in her pyjamas and slippers while listening to one of Glen's songs on her disc player.
Touching, inspiring, uplifting, funny and hard to forget, ONCE may well be the best music film of our generation, and in its own way, blows you away.
My Rating: 8/10
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