Neither lead was an actor & it was filmed in 17 days on a major budget so I can’t get too picky about the quality (although I did have to turn on the subtitles). I loved the music which is a good thing because basically it was just 1 long extended music video.

When the demo is completed in the studio and the engineer takes them out for a “car test” to see how it sounds on what he calls shitty speakers

When the guy plays the demo for his dad who listens quietly with no expression on his face then proclaims it “f-ing brilliant” and asks to hear it again.

I loved this movie! I enjoyed the music and I’m looking forward to listening to music by The Frames.

Full of cliché (although not at the end), but I enjoyed it anyway.
That said, if the guy said “Cool” one more time in the movie, I might have attacked the screen in an effort to strangle him.

I liked the ending, but found most of the film tedious.

I hate it I hate it I hate it I hate it!! I think I am the ONLY person I know who saw this and didn’t walk away feel special inside. No. The same whiny song over and over and over, and wtf are they even SAYING? GAH. Every time I hear that god awful theme I can feel the vein in my temple pulse. Honestly, I can’t put my finger on why I thought this was just the most boring movie of all time and all, but it was. I am sorry, can’t make an intelligent argument for it, just wanted to get it out of my system: I was bored, that song is lame!

Done now :)

interesting reading other’s comments on this.

i was surprised by how much i liked this. i remember hedwig and the angry inch: if the music had sucked, this would have been the biggest waste of time. but luckily the music didnt suck, it totally made both films.

simple story, and i thought it was a very honest representation of what its like going through the process of songwriting and recording.
i guess i like the poignancy of the ending, its total ambiguity. i just like that there wasnt any silly success story, how the album made him famous. sometimes that’s all there is, just a good album that probably no one else but you and your friends will hear.

Excellent, romantic, and hopeful. Thank goodness there are films like this that provide an alternative to Hollywood. There is a lot of music in the film- it is a musical (my husband in the other room said he thought that I was watching a two hour music video)! Though the music is not my particular favorite it does a good job of communicating the story in a poetic and creative way.

One of the most charmingly simple movies I have ever seen!

This movie somehow made a Monday amazing.

I’m so glad I hadn’t heard any of the songs. It made the first time “guy” opened his mouth to sing that much more amazing.

But for easy access for those who have seen it (until you realize you’ve played the songs on repeat for days and you break down and buy it on iTunes): Once’s music.

Once is a very charming movie. There are too many films out there nowadays that try to be “faux-bohemian or alternative”. This is not one of them. It is a very poetic movie that tells the story of two people meeting in Dublin and how they come together to make music. It is a wonderful film that I highly recommend.

a sweet story! i love stories like this that remind me how simple life should and can be.

I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this movie! Proof that a simple story told well can be incredibly powerful. And the music was truly lovely.

I first started watching this as a straight movie. It was bad. Just awful. Low budget, poor acting (lots of mumbling actors musicians), implausible story, people breaking out into song.

Then I started watching it as a (long) music video. Much, much, much better. Great songs, fun interaction between the musicians, interesting look at the process of making music, and of course Ireland itself.

Watched it on an AirCanada flight. God, this movie made me miss Dublin. Nice songs. Cute-ish story. Parts were very slow so I read…