Foreign Film Friday

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A Foreign Film Review by Chris White

ONCE

Written & Directed by John Carney

Music by Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová

Some day people will hear the anthemic ballad “Falling Slowly” and have absolutely no idea that it formed the emotional core of the most beloved film of the 2000s.

It’s just that good a song…it really is.

Of course, there will also be future-cinephiles that discover John Carney’s lovely music-film ONCE and find themselves awed by the discovery of so gorgeous a paean to romantic love tucked away in such an unassuming little Irish indie.

Indeed, ONCE is a film that most of us fell very quickly for, actually.

ONCE succeeds largely on the shoulders of its powerhouse songs…co-written and performed by its two stars, Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová. There is a story of course…two lonely souls fall in love while making beautiful music together…but make no mistake, ONCE is more concerned with connecting its relational dots with sweet melody, not pitch-perfect plotting.

In addition to the aforementioned “Falling Slowly,” other standout songs/scenes include the heart-pounding opening number “Say It to Me Now,” the soaring “When Your Mind’s Made Up,” and the most heartbreaking break-up ballad ever, “Lies.”

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a film that makes me feel more human, more hopeful, more loved…than John Carney’s ONCE.

2007 \\ Color \\ 86 min.

Fox Searchlight Pictures

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Ireland