Begin Again, the latest music-heavy drama from Once writer/director John Carney, tells a story that springs out of two other tales that happen concurrently; the dissolution of a young songwriter’s (Keira Knightley) relationship with her boyfriend and writing partner (Maroon 5’s Adam Levine) after he achieves rock star status, and the dissolution of a formerly successful music producer’s (Mark Ruffalo) life and career after a couple of tough breaks lead him into a pattern of alcoholism and self-destructive acting out. One chance encounter between a down-on-her-luck musician and an at-the-end-of-his-rope producer later, and you can pretty much tell what’s going to happen. They decide to make music together, and the process of doing so not only gets them both back on their feet, it teaches them important lessons about life and relationships. Every move this movie makes is telegraphed a mile away, but, if there was going to be a reason to see Begin Again, it wasn’t going to be for the groundbreaking storytelling anyway.
Chances are, if somebody was going to see Begin Again, it was either for the promise of a soundtrack full of great music, or to take in the performances of its two leads. Ruffalo’s scruffy charisma and Knightley’s sweet smile are two very powerful tricks for a movie to have up its sleeve, after all. Unfortunately, while they’re both present here, they’re just not enough to keep Begin Again from being a total bore. The portions of the film that focus on the failed romance of two young, white, attractive, rich people are just too rom-com retread to be remotely interesting. The portions that focus on the down and out record producer could have been something, except they don’t get enough time to fully develop, and the drama of the situation is neutered when Ruffalo’s character is given an out for his behavior and ultimately doesn’t have to own up to his alcoholism. That leaves the portions of the film where Ruffalo and Knightley’s characters get together and make music, and they’re no deeper than a montage sequence from an 80s movie where a bunch of people get together and clean up an old house while a song plays. Begin Again is pure Hollywood formula that has been mined no deeper than usual and that has had no unique spin put on it whatsoever. Tedious.
Which leaves us with the music. There is a lot of good music in this thing, I guess, if you’re into the sort of pop-friendly, singer-songwriter stuff that the people behind the soundtrack have come up with. Is it all so good that an entire feature film needed to be built around it? Probably not—and that’s exactly what this film plays as while you’re watching it—a half-baked promotional vehicle meant to promote a soundtrack. If you’re the type of person who likes Maroon 5 and who wants to hear what Levine did for this movie, then, by all means, give the soundtrack a listen. Fans of Knightley especially might want to try it out to see what a pleasant surprise she can be when put behind a microphone. There’s really no reason for anyone to bother sitting through the movie itself though. Life is too short, and there will be other Mark Ruffalo vehicles.
