August Rush

There IS no spoon!

Last updated: 2010-03-13 06:22:11 by McDozer

If you’ve read the story Oliver Twist, then you have a pretty good  basis for what this film is about. Make no mistake, though, this is not some  sort of retelling of that classic tale. August Rush simply uses  elements from the story, such as the orphanage, gang of misfits, finding a new  home, etc.
Story aside, the best thing about this flick is the music. While not a  musical, it is all about music. From August learning he can play guitar and  piano, to his parents talents in cello and guitar/singing, to the final concert  at Julliard. The music is center stage here, especially Van Morrison’s  “Moondance”, which is quoted almost ad nauseum through this picture.
Freddie Highmore is perfectly cast as August. He has that vapid innocence  that Haley Joel Osment had when he was this age, and it really works for this  character. I mean, you can’t have some kid that seem to have seen wy more than  they should have at this age playing August, it just wouldn’t work.
Keri Russell gives one of her best performances here. she is August’s mother,  but because her dad thought her music was more important, when she was forced to  give birth to him prematurely, he signed her signature to some papers giving him  away. On his death bed, the dad tells her what he did, and the emotion you see  from her from that point on is the kid of stuff you’d see from Meryl Streep  (though she’s nowhere near Meryl’s caliber, just a comparison).
I kind of felt like there could have been more of Jonathan Rhys Meyers. He is  the dad who doesn’t know August is his until the final scene. They even play  together in the park at one point. Looking at his face, I kind of get the idea  that August knew, or could feel it, but not so certain about Meyers.
Terrence Howard play a pivotal role as the social worker who cares. I know, I  know…you never hear about those, but here he is playing one, and he does a good  job of it. Howard isn’t a major player in this film per se, but he is  responsible for telling Keri Russell who her son is.
Robin Williams is the villain here, playing an apparent schizophrenic leader  of a gang of kids who live (squat) in a condemned building and spend their days  panhandling around New York. As good a comedian as Williams is, I’m always more  impressed when he takes om these dramatic roles, because he does such a good job  with them. However, I didn’t get why he was trying to look like Bono from U2,  what with the soul patch and how he was dressed, but I’m assuming that was his  choice. Or was he saying that Bono is a bad parent-type figure? Hmm…
As a musician, I love it when films like this come out that really put music  into the spotlight and don’t make it seem like some sort of joke, as they do  with marching bands. That bias aside, this is really a superb picture. The  flashbacks at the beginning that tell us how the parents met and conceived  August work for me, but I’m sure some were confused by the way they chose to put  that in there. Dramas tend to be a bit on the boring side, but this one moves at  such a steady pace, that it doesn’t get the chance to fall into the muck of  boringness. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to watch an extremely  well-made, well thought out, superb piece of filmmaking.
5 out of 5 stars
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If you’ve read the story Oliver Twist, then you have a pretty good basis for what this film is about. Make no mistake, though, this is not some sort of retelling of that classic tale. August Rush simply uses elements from the story, such as the orphanage, gang of misfits, finding a new home, etc.
Story aside, the best thing about this flick is the music. While not a musical, it is all about music. From August learning he can play guitar and piano, to his parents talents in cello and guitar/singing, to the final concert at Julliard. The music is center stage here, especially Van Morrison’s “Moondance”, which is quoted almost ad nauseum through this picture.
Freddie Highmore is perfectly cast as August. He has that vapid innocence that Haley Joel Osment had when he was this age, and it really works for this character. I mean, you can’t have some kid that seem to have seen wy more than they should have at this age playing August, it just wouldn’t work.
Keri Russell gives one of her best performances here. she is August’s mother, but because her dad thought her music was more important, when she was forced to give birth to him prematurely, he signed her signature to some papers giving him away. On his death bed, the dad tells her what he did, and the emotion you see from her from that point on is the kid of stuff you’d see from Meryl Streep (though she’s nowhere near Meryl’s caliber, just a comparison).
I kind of felt like there could have been more of Jonathan Rhys Meyers. He is the dad who doesn’t know August is his until the final scene. They even play together in the park at one point. Looking at his face, I kind of get the idea that August knew, or could feel it, but not so certain about Meyers.
Terrence Howard play a pivotal role as the social worker who cares. I know, I know…you never hear about those, but here he is playing one, and he does a good job of it. Howard isn’t a major player in this film per se, but he is responsible for telling Keri Russell who her son is.
Robin Williams is the villain here, playing an apparent schizophrenic leader of a gang of kids who live (squat) in a condemned building and spend their days panhandling around New York. As good a comedian as Williams is, I’m always more impressed when he takes om these dramatic roles, because he does such a good job with them. However, I didn’t get why he was trying to look like Bono from U2, what with the soul patch and how he was dressed, but I’m assuming that was his choice. Or was he saying that Bono is a bad parent-type figure? Hmm…
As a musician, I love it when films like this come out that really put music into the spotlight and don’t make it seem like some sort of joke, as they do with marching bands. That bias aside, this is really a superb picture. The flashbacks at the beginning that tell us how the parents met and conceived August work for me, but I’m sure some were confused by the way they chose to put that in there. Dramas tend to be a bit on the boring side, but this one moves at such a steady pace, that it doesn’t get the chance to fall into the muck of boringness. I highly recommend this to anyone who wants to watch an extremely well-made, well thought out, superb piece of filmmaking.

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