There's music in the wind and sky. Can you hear it? And there's hope. Can you feel it? The boy called August Rush can. The music mysteriously draws him, penniless and alone, to New York City in a quest to find - somehow, someway - the parents separated from him years earlier. And along the way he may also find the musical genius hidden within him. Experience the magic of this rhapsodic epic of the heart starring Freddie Highmore (as August), Keri Russell, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Terrence Howard and Robin Williams. "I believe in music the way some people believe in fairy tales," August says. Open your heart and listen. You'll believe, too.
Music has long been considered a universal language with the power to bring people together, but can the simple act of playing music possibly unite a child with a mother and father who live in two different cities and don't even know of the child's existence? Having shared one extraordinary night, classical cellist Lyla Novacek (Keri Russell) and Irish singer and songwriter Louis Connelly (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) were a union meant to be that was torn apart by circumstances and a protective father (William Sadler). After eleven years, both Lyla and Louis have given up performing only to find that they are unhappy and searching for a sense of fulfillment that will ultimately lead both artists back to music and performing. Evan (Freddie Highmore) is an 11-year old orphan who's grown up hearing music in everything around him and is convinced that his real parents want him and will find him with the help of music. Driven by his innate musical genius and a powerful compulsion to perform before the world, Evan runs away from the orphanage and is initially taken in by a street man known as Wizard (Robin Williams) who encourages his musical talent and renames him August Rush and, later, by a local priest who arranges for August to receive a Julliard education. August is a child prodigy who excels beyond even the wildest expectations and earns the opportunity of a lifetime--a chance to perform in front of an enormous audience in New York's Central Park. The question is; can his performance possibly reach the audience August really craves? While elements of this film are completely unbelievable (take August's instant prowess on the guitar or his immediate and sophisticated grasp of musical notation and musical theory), the message of the universality of music and the notion that "the music is all around us, all you have to do is listen" is both compelling and powerful. --Tami Horiuchi
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Listening to the impressionistic universe:
This is a different sort of movie for me. I tend to prefer movies with great dialogue and watertight plots - and this movie, although it has some important dialogue, is also significant for the dialogue that it leaves out. It also has a plot that is so surrealistic that it requires suspension of belief. And the montages, as everyone is rushing towards the concert in Central Park, are beautiful but I can't help asking things like, "How did Mr. Jeffries get there in time? Where was August's tuxedo?" It... more info
#1 movie !!!!:
This is one of the best movies I've ever seen.
The music is incredible !!!!!!!!!!!
Quite possibly the worst movie I've ever seen:
So, so bad. Sort of a "Oliver Twist" - boy deprived of his rightful destiny, in this case musical genius; and his misadventures while "following the music". The film had so many plot holes that made it absolutely impossible to buy into the story. I never believed from the get go that the two musicians fell in love, that they could never have found each other earlier, that a baby could be born and given to an orphanage without the mother's consent or even knowing what really happended, etc. etc.
The... more info
Completely Unbelievable!:
We rented this movie after my sister said it was her favorite movie of '08. I found it completely unrealistic. I wonder if anyone really musical was involved in creating the storyline of this movie.
One major flaw was Lyla's special invitation to be a featured performer after 11 years of not really playing the cello. Is there a Julliard graduate out there who can confirm that after such a long lapse in practicing, there is any way that Lyla can brush up in (what appeared to be) a week, and give a... more info
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