A cutesy, feel good romantic comedy, a bit draggy in some parts but it does have its sparks of wit

Rating: 6/10 (25 February 2007)

Alex Fletcher is an 80s has-been (Hugh Grant) from the duo Pop!, and he needs to compose a hit for a Britney equivalent, Cora Corman (Haley Bennett, who has eerily dead eyes like those of Bjork's), in an attempt to boost his flagging career. Since he's more of a musician than a writer, he finds help from his plant lady Sophie Fisher (Drew Barrymore).
Pop!'s video at the start of the film establishes where Alex comes from and it admittedly had an authentic feel of an 80s music video. Grant has left his usual womanizing cad characters with this film, and like his character, is unashamedly true to his range. Alex has no qualms being called a 'has-been', has no angst nor pride. Barrymore is luminous in this role and like Grant, plays this sort of character well. Grant and Barrymore effectively work as a tandem because they embrace their genre and unabashedly play it to the hilt so they never really have to try so hard.
Alex is given depth and not just the easygoing man he appears to be. When Alex convinces Sophie to confront her ex, "People wait their whole lives to see an ex when things are going really good. It NEVER happens. You could make relationship history!" people can relate to that. And when he justifies how pop songs are superior to literature ("Let's see how reading a novel can make you feel better in five minutes just like a pop song can"), and when he gives Sophie a much-needed reality check by calling her on her pity party. In the end, we realize that Alex is a brilliant popstar after all and Sophie is not just a cerebral Lit major, because they are able to relate to the average person on an emotional level in the amount of time it takes to do so: a five-minute pop song.
Music & Lyrics is a cutesy, feel good romantic comedy, a bit draggy in some parts but it does have its sparks of wit.