Music and Lyrics

Starring: Hugh Grant, Drew Barrymore, Brad Garrett, Kristin Johnston
Directed by: Marc Lawrence
Rating: R
Genre: Comedy, Romance
2007

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: An 80s pop sensation (Hugh Grant) has a chance at a comeback when a teen queen asks him to write a song for her. He gets unexpected help in the form a woman (Drew Barrymore) with a gift for song lyrics. As they work together, they begin to realize it's not purely a working relationship between them.

Review:

Tim: There was something to this movie that appealed to me and made me excited to see it even though I heard negative reviews from people (and I mean normal people, not critics). I can definitely see where those criticisms are true, and this movie is quite flawed. However, that didn’t totally detract from my enjoyment. Despite multiple shortcomings, this film still has some strengths.

Chiefly, I enjoyed the performance of Hugh Grant. He has crafted this scoundrel-with-a-heart persona quite well in recent years, and it’s fully on display here. At his best (like in About a Boy), he commands the attention of the audience and forces you to like him. He gives off that feeling here. Drew Barrymore gives one of her better performances (I often don’t like her) and she and Grant have a strange short of chemistry. I wouldn’t have anticipated they would get along, but they look very good on screen together.

The movie mostly stays on the right track, although it does derail in a few spots. Mostly, however, this is a simple story about music, redemption, and love. Those are all things most people can relate to, and they do work well here. In the moments when the film strays, critical damage is done, but the ship eventually rights itself not too much worse for the wear.

Music and Lyrics is a lightweight romantic comedy, make no mistake out that. However, with some inspired performances by Grant and Barrymore, there should be just enough here for you to derive some enjoyment out of it. Yes, you might be disappointed with the product as a whole (and in some ways, you certainly should be), but it’s not devoid of entertainment, either.


Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating- 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: About a Boy, Notting Hill