Went in not knowing much beyond the acclaim it received at Sundance -- and left seeing that the praise was well deserved.
Done for less than 200k on a 17 day shooting schedule, with musicians taking actor roles AND putting out a wonderful soundtrack, and I tell you everything about to clicked for me.
The movie lacked the pretension and predictability that follows light-hearted romantic attempts, the ending was well done, and lacked the general silliness that (I think) hurts most modern attempts at musicals -- and it does so by using well placed music to tell most of the story, and letting the dialog (which is also well written) accent it.
Will you leave this movie with a life-changing experience? Of course not, and the hype surrounding this movie is a pity because nothing ever lives up to the expectations once that train leaves the station -- but if you enjoy movies you will leave the theater thinking you just saw a fine example of what happens when you filter out the big budgets, the egos, and the studios, and just let a fine writer/director and his cast deliver a very enjoyable film.
Done for less than 200k on a 17 day shooting schedule, with musicians taking actor roles AND putting out a wonderful soundtrack, and I tell you everything about to clicked for me.
The movie lacked the pretension and predictability that follows light-hearted romantic attempts, the ending was well done, and lacked the general silliness that (I think) hurts most modern attempts at musicals -- and it does so by using well placed music to tell most of the story, and letting the dialog (which is also well written) accent it.
Will you leave this movie with a life-changing experience? Of course not, and the hype surrounding this movie is a pity because nothing ever lives up to the expectations once that train leaves the station -- but if you enjoy movies you will leave the theater thinking you just saw a fine example of what happens when you filter out the big budgets, the egos, and the studios, and just let a fine writer/director and his cast deliver a very enjoyable film.