Picture Music and Lyrics as directed by Michael Winterbottom: A lonely busker (singer Glen Hasnard) and a young pianist (Markela Irglova) meet on the streets of Dublin and bond over music. They don’t have bendy sex, but they get something even more romantic: their own musical.
The film’s budget is low, but it’s a musical nonetheless, with frequent full performances of the duo’s appealing songs (the low-income characters make a better poor man’s Radiohead than Snow Patrol). Not much happens; the pair regards each other, sings a bit, and tries to record a demo. It’s the film’s eye for the romance of small moments that makes it all so beguiling. Early on, Irglova walks down a nighttime street, listening to Hansard’s backing track on headphones and singing along with her own lyrics. It’s a simple image, but the camera follows it, letting the song play until the loveliness is almost unbearable.
Once is nearly a victim of its own sweetness as every thin supporting character beams low-key rays of sunshine. But it maintains a palpable sense of melancholy — the film is so concise and unplugged that it can’t help but keep its feet near the ground. The moments of lift off, then, feel all the more exhilarating.
Opens May 16
The film’s budget is low, but it’s a musical nonetheless, with frequent full performances of the duo’s appealing songs (the low-income characters make a better poor man’s Radiohead than Snow Patrol). Not much happens; the pair regards each other, sings a bit, and tries to record a demo. It’s the film’s eye for the romance of small moments that makes it all so beguiling. Early on, Irglova walks down a nighttime street, listening to Hansard’s backing track on headphones and singing along with her own lyrics. It’s a simple image, but the camera follows it, letting the song play until the loveliness is almost unbearable.
Once is nearly a victim of its own sweetness as every thin supporting character beams low-key rays of sunshine. But it maintains a palpable sense of melancholy — the film is so concise and unplugged that it can’t help but keep its feet near the ground. The moments of lift off, then, feel all the more exhilarating.
Opens May 16
