Well, we are still on holidays, still in the good festive mood of Christmas time, so last night I decided to watch this modern fairy-tale they broadcast on Tv last week and I recorded because I didn’t have time to watch it then. Now, as usual, I couldn’t resist telling you about it. Guess what? I love stories featuring good feelings, I love music, I love romances, I love New York ( was there twice many years ago and long for going back at least once in my life) … and all of that was in this movie. It reminded me of Oliver Twist – do you remember Dickens's little orphan brought up in a workhouse who found himself in dangerous London and was exploited , with other poor young fellows, by wicked Fagin and Sykes? August Rush is a similar story set in contemporary US (New York, Boston) is much less realistic but much more poetic and romantic.
The plot moves back and forwards between eleven years ago and nowadays. Eleven years ago on a moonlit rooftop above Washington Square, Lyla Novacek (Keri Russell), a well-off young cellist, and Louis Connelly (Jonathan Rhys Meyers), a charismatic Irish singer-songwriter, were drawn together by a street musician's rendition of ''Moondance'' and fell in love. After the most romantic night of her life, Lyla promised to meet Louis again but, despite her protests, her father rushed her to her next concert--leaving Louis to believe that she didn't care. Disheartened, he found it impossible to continue playing and eventually abandoned his music while Lyla, her own hopes for love lost, was led to believe months later that she had also lost their unborn child in a car accident. After eleven years, their orphaned son Evan (Freddie Highmore) escapes from the orphanage where he was brought up and escapes to New York where he uses his musical talent as a clue to find his birth parents. But he meets a dangerous guy, Maxwell Wallace "Wizard" , (Robin William) who houses several orphans and runaways and wants to exploit Evan's extraordinary talent to his own advantage…
Music is very important in this film. Composer Mark Mancina spent over 18 months composing the film's musical score. The heart of the story is how we respond and connect through music. It's about this young boy who believes that he's going to find his parents through his music. That's what drives him. The final theme
This movie is not for everyone: it requires suspension of disbelief to accept a rather implausible plot, no reservation against sentimental tales. These defects are compensated by a talented cast, evocative music and visual poetry. Not a masterpiece but a nice sweet way to spend a couple of hours.