Meant for each other

Rating: 9/10 (8 July 2007)

"Once" (2006) was written and directed by John Carney. The film, set in Dublin, is a love story. However, we know that "the course of true love never did run smooth."
Glen Hansard plays a street musician. (His day job is repairing vacuum cleaners.) Markéta Irglová plays a Czech immigrant who sells magazines and flowers on the street. (Her day job is cleaning houses.) Naturally enough, they meet, and there's a definite chemistry between them. There's a definite chemistry between their music as well. It turns out that the young woman is an accomplished pianist and singer. Together, they really do make beautiful music.
Naturally, problems arise. Both people have previous attachments. The plot of the movie is concerned with the way they work out their lives in view of their circumstances and their commitments.
Director Carney does a solid job of introducing us to the realities of earning a living as a street busker. The entire film has an authentic, realistic feel to it. Markéta Irglová is a fine musician, and turns out to be an excellent actor as well. (This is her first film.) Carney picked bravely and well when he chose Irglová. She's attractive, but not in the supermodel style of Paulina Porizkova. Irglová looks like the character she portrays--someone who may be selling flowers on the street, but who is a talented and sensitive musician at heart.