Once

On Friday, Jenny and I saw the movie ‘Once.’  I loved it.  Maybe more than any other movie I have ever seen.  It follows the relationship between an Irish busker (street musician) and an Eastern European immigrant as the meet each other and write music together.  It stars Glen Hansard (of The Frames) and Marketa Irglova.  The two had recently put out an album called The Swell Season.  I have only heard about half of this album, but it is magnificent.

The movie is kind of a musical.  But not really.  It involves music, and singing, but not the dancing in the streets type of singing of The Music Man.  And the music, which was all actually written and performed by Hansard and Irglova, totally blew me away.  It is beautiful, almost orchestral in scope.  Not the kind of music you hear on the radio these days.  These songs are a far cry from the rasping, edgy tone of today’s “indie rock” and they are much more than the catchy fluff of today’s pop-stars and singer-songwriters.  Magnificent.

The film won the audience award for a foreign film at Sundance, and may still be playing at an indie theatre near you.  Go see it.  Or buy the soundtrack.  Or both.  You won’t regret it.

~ by Mike Seawright on August 28, 2007.