Begin Again Blu-ray and DVD Review

4 stars of funny and heartwarming musical fun.

Written and directed by John Carney (On The Edge, Once), this is a great feel good film, with plenty of music performed by Keira Knightley (Pirates Of The Caribbean, Pride and Prejudice) and Adam Levine (lead singer with Maroon 5) themselves and written by Gregg Alexander (front man of the New Radicals).

Gretta (Keira Knightley) and her boyfriend Dave (Adam Levine) have moved to New York with a dream to make it big in the music industry. However, when Dave begins to take the credit for their collaborations and the record company make it clear that they are interested in him and him alone, things seem to be falling apart. After an affair, Gretta is forced to leave Dave and finds herself alone in the big city.

Luckily, she has a good friend from England, Steve (James Corden – One Chance, Doctor Who), who lets her move in with him and offers support. When he takes her to an open mic night and cons her into performing on stage, she is spotted by Dan (Mark Ruffalo – The Avengers, Shutter Island), who sees potential in her and wants to sign her up.

Unfortunately for both of them, Dan has just been fired from his position as a record label executive and his former partner Saul (Mos Def – 16 Blocks, The Italian Job) doesn’t see what he sees, but agrees to hear a demo.

This is when they come up with a brilliant idea, to record the album on the streets of New York, each track in a different location, to capture the spirit of the city.

The film follows the fate of Gretta and Dan as they try to help each other to sort out their lives. Dan is trying and failing to form a relationship with his daughter, Violet (Hailee Steinfeld – Ender’s Game, 3 Days To Kill) and his estranged wife, Miriam (Catherine Keener – Being John Malkovich, Captain Phillips) and Gretta needs to decide what she is going to do next.

This is an extremely enjoyable film to watch, with lots of music to clap along to, and some amazing performances from Adam Levine and surprisingly, Keira Knightley, who really is very good.

The acting is excellent all round and the story is well written and engaging and keeps you guessing right up till the very end (you need to watch the credits). I was all set to hate the ending and all of a sudden, I didn’t! Ace.With a cameo from Cee Lo Green as rapper Troublegum, who helps out with session musicians, it just nicely rounds the whole thing off.

A must-own feel good film, ideal to put a big smile on your face on a cold winters’ night.

“That’s what I love about music. Even the most banal scenes are suddenly invested in so much meaning, you know? All these banalities are suddenly turned into these beautiful, effervescent pearls.”