Not exactly boy meets girl, but sort of like that

Rating: 8/10 (16 August 2014)

Begin Again (2013/II) was written and directed by John Carney, It's a movie with a fairly basic plot--struggling, formerly great music producer (Dan, played by Mark Ruffalo), meets young, inexperienced singer-songwriter (Gretta, played by Keira Knightley) and the magic begins.
What makes this more than just another summer movie is the great acting--from the two leads, and also from Hailee Steinfeld as Violet, Dan's daughter, and Catherine Keener as Miriam, Dan's estranged wife.
Also, I've never understood what a record's producer brought to the team. Here, it was clear to me that Dan could listen to a young singer playing her guitar, and hear in his head what she would sound like with full musical accompaniment. That's a talent that he had, and others didn't.
Another highlight for me was the concept of avoiding the cost of a studio by recording an album outdoors in various locations across New York City. It's one of those ideas where you say, "It's so crazy, it just might work."
We saw this film on the large screen at the Little Theatre in Rochester, NY. It probably will work better on a large screen than on DVD. However, it's worth seeing, so if it's not playing locally, watch it any way you can. It's not a magical movie, but it's much better than most movies, and you'll be glad that you saw it.