Wish it had lived up to its promise

Rating: 4/10 (3 July 2011)

I wanted so badly to love this movie. It had such a wonderful premise and really good actors (except for Robin Williams, who was completely miscast). The original music was fantastic and fit the plot very well. I just could not believe the plot - and nothing was explained or credible. It didn't even copy the Oliver Twist theme in an original way. Even if the viewer must suspend their disbelief (which I find acceptable), the concept of the music bringing the boy and his parents together was never properly structured or resolved. I wish there had been some little gem of recognition that would have brought the three characters together in a plausible way. The kid conducting a symphony orchestra after a couple of months of music school training was NOT plausible. I gave it four stars because the child actors were really good and sang wonderfully. Whoever wrote this piece of tripe should go back to screenwriters' school. Geez, I could have done a better job writing it myself.