I like this line in the movie review at Amazon by Benjamin J. Burgraff: “this is not a movie for nitpickers, but for dreamers.”

My Wednesday book group is taking the summer off from reading to watch movies. We watched this movie today, and apparently we are all dreamers. We all found it entertaining and touching, in spite of its faults. By the end, there wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

I was on the plane coming back from the Dominican Republic and as I got more and more bored from the tedium that is The Assassination of Jesse James I looked over somebody’s shoulder to see that they were watching a film about a kid playing guitar so I thought I’d give it a go.

The film is utter saccharine with wholly undeveloped characters and plot so ridiculous it isn’t even worth describing. Even more ridiculous is the music itself. The first time this kid picks up a guitar he’s doing tapped harmonics, eight finger tapping, complicated arpeggios…I mean ffs. I know he’s supposed to be a ‘prodigy’, but even prodigies have to learn technique, they’re not born with it.

And Robin Williams, where did you go so wrong? Since Good Will Hunting (which I personally don’t rate) what have you done (alright, I secretly like Patch Addams but we’re all allowed some lapses in judgement)? Please, so I can still say that I like you with any credibility, do one more good film as I know you’ve got it in you.