Once

This weekend we went to see the film Once. One of my friend's had spoken to me about it back in June. She had heard that in its limited release it was selling out all of its showings and wanted to see the movie for her birthday. Unfortunately, the movie was only playing in Marin and to make the trek out there just to see a film didn't exactly appeal to me. Then last week when we went to L.A. for another friend's birthday the film came up again in conversation.

So instead of waiting for "Once" to go to my favorite second run movie theater we made the effort to see it this weekend. Not knowing anything about the plot except that it was vaguely a romance of sorts, and not knowing much about The Frames Glen Hansard's band, I was floored. Not much happens in the movie, but the plot is so expertly laid out and the story so well told that the movie's touching appeal is obvious. What I don't get is why its appealing to such a wide audience.

The movie's music and lyrics are painfully honest and listening to them you can hear the grief the music was borne from. This type of art usually goes ignored for its honesty. People tend not to want to be reminded of "real world" hurt so what is propelling "Once" fever? It must be framing the music into a movie plot. Three of the most used songs in the movie were released before the movie in 2006 on an album called "Swell Season." If you take into consideration, that the movie must have begun filming around the same time, as the album release, you can think yourself into a chicken and egg conundrum. Why they didn't hold the cd release until the film opened remains an unanswered question for me. Whatever the appeal is I hope it lasts. "Once" is one of the best music movies to have been released it years.