I don't wanna hear old sad b_____d music

Rating: 4/10 (25 August 2019)

That's it. I searched for this movie because I kept hearing this Jack Black sound bite on the radio. This is a film I passed by at the time of release, but decided to rent it to say 'yes' I had seen it. It's OK in part. I felt like I was watching a cinematic, though darker version of How I Met Your Mother and can see this might have influenced the character development of that show or at least Mosby.
Some viewers, will say it's not funny - I heartily chuckled in places. Tim Robbins, the love rival, gets too small a part, a sub-plot. How much of this feature was haphazardly left on the cutting-room floor? At no point are we informed as to why Cusack needs the girl and they have zero chemistry. Cusack wears the same hang-dog expression throughout, often whilst standing in the rain in his Brando leather jacket.
I like music. I like indie music. So what. Yes I know of Belle and Sebastian, but this in no way makes the film more relatable and shouldn't alter anyone's appreciation of the proceedings. The problem I found was the uneven pace and loose structure. It's slow and feels like an almost 3h feature but I persisted. The last half hour feels rushed and seemingly attempting to squeeze in a large section of the book, with sparse dialog. I was enjoying it, but then it ran out of steam so noticeably that I scored it a 4 rather than a 7. It's overrated.