It has been over 8 years since Musician turned Writer/Director John Carney won indie film lovers’ hearts with his brilliant musical drama Once, a film that beautifully captured the romance of music, and those who make it. Returning again to similar thematic elements, Carney’s latest effort, Begin Again, treads in the same territory, but this time around with a lighter touch, a stronger script, and the beautiful backdrop of New York City.

Begin Again starts as two separate narratives that eventually tell one story as they come together. Again tells the tale of Gretta, a young singer-songwriter who’s just relocated to New York City with her long-time boyfriend/writing partner Dave, (played by a stellar Adam Levine in his first feature role). As is director John Carney’s style, and to our benefit, the film begins swiftly, finding ourselves onstage with Gretta (played perfectly by Keira Knightley) reluctantly performing a new song in a New York City Music Club (Music Enthusiasts will recognize the venue as Arlene’s Grocery). Much of the film feels shot from the actors’ perspectives, and Carney does a remarkable job of maintaining that point-of-view narrative through the film. As she performs the song to uninterested bar crawlers, you feel the pain of performing to a murmuring crowd, that doesn’t hear what you hear in your music. The performance is nice, if not uninteresting, and I immediately began to question if the music was going to hold up to the gorgeous folk landscape of Carney’s previous film, Once.

From there we are taken back in time and introduced to shamed Record Executive Dan, (perfectly cast Mark Ruffalo) as he awakens to his usual crappy existence. We come to find out Dan was something of a renegade in his day, but has lost his luster, for reasons unknown early on in the film. Ruffalo plays Dan with an inextinguishable energy, and it is some of the finest work of his career. Carney’s past being what it is, his insight into the music industry is so perfectly placed in his cast. In his opening scene, Dan drunkenly stumbles out to a meeting and drops his dated flip phone that breaks all over the place (remember detachable batteries??) In a world where even the poorest idiot in the industry has an iPhone, this is a subtle play to Dan’s old-school nature and just how far he’s fallen. The dude is Vintage,  and he needs an act. NOW. But music sucks, and he’s lost his place at the titan label he once started.

In one of the movie’s best moments, we find ourselves watching Knightley’s aforementioned performance from Ruffalo’s drunken eyes, and this is where the movie begins its constant stream of brilliant reveals, frenetic storytelling and hilarious musically tinged moments. As Dan imagines Gretta’s song as a produced performance (in a hilariously trippy and surreal scene), we are immediately made to feel guilty at our own reaction to her original performance. There is something magical to this. And Dan knows it. He’s found his muse.

The film never gets too grand, and we never get too far from the actors, which, aside from its Grammy worthy soundtrack, is everything to this movie.

Without giving too much away, the film takes off, Gretta’s boyfriend is indeed the A-hole we expected him to be, and Dan begins healing himself, and Gretta, through her music. Along the way we are introduced to a barrage of characters, from Ruffalo’s estranged daughter, his former best friend and business partner who’s turned cold-as-ice record executive (played by Mos Def) and Steve, Gretta’s Busker-Producer friend from back home in the UK, played by a hilarious James Corden, who’s worth the price of admission alone.  The mix of UK and American presence makes for a charming conversational backdrop as well and adds an element that made the conversations that much more interesting.

For his first major film role, Adam Levine does a fine job playing a version of himself (Singer Dave Kohl) opposite a sparkling Knightley. The musical performances are real for all involved, a redeeming quality that is an anchor to the film’s authenticity. Levine is a natural, albeit some rock star self-deprecation (a moment where a bearded Levine accepts an award is so bizarrely hilarious you feel like you’re watching a scene from Anchorman).

While the leads in Begin Again are outstanding, the supporting cast shines in a way only small films like this allow. The addition of real-life superstars Cee-lo Green (as himself) and Levine makes for an interesting element- you wonder if this casting was a happenstance meeting at some The Voice after party, but what could be disruptive never throws the movie off of it’s course. In many ways, Cee-lo Green steals absolutely every scene he is in.

The music in the film is inspiring, well written, and we constantly feel we are in the middle of the performances. There are several songs in this film worth listening to, and music purists will love everything about the way Knightley’s Career and Album comes of age through the film. Begin Again largely avoids most music film cliches, in the same way Entourage parodies just how cliche the film industry actually is. As with any film this good, there are a few moments that feel forced, but they are often redeemed within seconds, as the film keeps a fantastic flow (a scene where a label considers the idiotic idea of “Artist Audio Commentary” over their music shines). From the camera, Carney offers up nuanced close shots, as if you’re right there. The way the director pulls this off is so fantastic. The film never gets too grand, and we never get too far from the actors, which aside from its Grammy worthy soundtrack, is everything to this movie. Carney does a fantastic job of presenting New York City in its most humbling form, rather than as the massive metropolis it usually appears as in film.  He makes you feel each actor’s every word as if you’re right there in the conversation. Carney achieves everything he sets out to do with ease, and it makes for a fresh film.

As Dan and Gretta’s musical, as well as personal relationship grows, Carney’s writing avoids hitting you over the head with the characters’ tragedies, as well as romance. Instead, he builds their characters through it, and reveling in the hope they find in the music.
Dan’s (Ruffalo) story of redemption, and Gretta’s (Knightley) self-discovery, both unfold nicely as their lives begin to turn for the better. Nothing is predictable, and the sharp writing and exceptional performances, both on the musical front and the acting, make you wish there was more to watch than just the 104 minutes of the film. (HINT: STAY THROUGH THE CREDITS)

Begin Again leaps from hilarious to tragic to whimsical seamlessly, with a beautiful live soundtrack that left me with goosebumps more than once. This film is a must-see, as it will leave you better than before you saw it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwLuDO_Cxfc&feature=kp