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Kirsten Sheridan, August Rush

by Stephanie Allerdice
11/21/2007

"I believe in music the way some people believe in fairytales." - August Rush.

This from the boy who was transported to Neverland alongside Johnny Depp. Talk about a dream come true! But I digress. Director Kirsten Sheridan's August Rush is a modern fairytale centered on a gifted boy that uses his musical skills to find his long-lost parents.

Lyla Novacek, a classic cellist played by Keri Russell, and Louis Connelly, an Irish rocker played by Jonathan Rhys Meyers, meet one night at a party and instantly fall in love. He wins her, and every female in the audience, over with a song. Unfortunately, their romance is cut short when Lyla's father forces the young lovers apart. In typical fairytale/romance fashion, instead of moving on with their lives, Lyla and Louis pine for each other.

Unsurprisingly, Lyla later discovers that she is carrying Louis's child. She gets in a terrible accident and is forced to deliver the baby early. Her father, not wanting to encourage any more interaction between her daughter and the Irish rebel, gives the baby up for adoption and tells Lyla that he was stillborn.

Flash forward eleven years. Lyla and Louis are still heartbroken and lost. They've both given up their music. Unbeknownst to them, their son Evan Taylor, soon to be August Rush, feels music everywhere. He believes that if he plays music, his parents will find him. Because this is a fairytale, he has the ability to play any instrument he touches.

August Rush had potential to be a great holiday film, but only manages to squeeze by with giving you the warm fuzzies. It feels slightly rough, and while that works for other films, it simply feels as though this is an unfinished project. Realistic stories benefit from nitty-gritty visual styles, but magical tales of orphan boys should be shiny and glossy. Though the plot at first glance seems original, the film is full of boring and predictable fairytale clichés.

To praise the good qualities, the acting is the best part of Rush. Jonathan Rhys Meyers, who usually plays dark roles (Match Point, I'll Sleep When I'm Dead), delivers a stirring performance. His Louis is a wanderer, having lost both loves of his life: music and Lyla.

But don't get those tissues out yet, it's a happy ending! Keri Russell doesn't say much here, but she has an undeniable talent at conveying emotions without saying a word. It is clear that Freddie Highmore has a bright future ahead. Move over, Dakota Fanning. Highmore's innocence and hope keeps the audience hooked.

The greatest disappointment of Rush was Robin Williams. Generally a source of comic relief, he here portrays Maxwell "Wizard" Wallace, the eccentric leader of a group of homeless children. The children play music for money, and Wallace collects it all. The trailers for the film portray him as a fatherly/mentor-y figure for Evan/August, but he is really just a money-grubbing opportunist that takes advantage of the young boy. Despite the opportunity to play evil, something Williams has shown he can do quite well (One Hour Photo, Insomnia), he played the part blandly.

August Rush is the cinematic equivalent of an easy read. But then again, who thought it would be anything more? Rush is a cute but lackluster rendition of the all-too-familiar gifted-orphan tale.

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