Freddie Highmore is a very talented young actor and he has the potential for a long, successful career. Hopefully he will be able to make the transition to adult roles successfully once he is older. I loved him in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and have been interested in seeing some of his other movies. I was interested in August Rush from the first time I saw a preview.
Evan heard music all around him. He hadn't had the opportunity to learn how to play any instruments, but he hoped that would change. He believed that his appreciation for music had come from the parents he never knew and he hoped that if he could learn how to play music, his parents would be able to hear it and find him. He managed to get to New York City where he met Wizard, a man who helped him get started playing music around the city and came up with the performing name of August Rush for him to use. Wizard realized right away just how talented Evan was and he started trying to figure out how to benefit from it.
Eleven years earlier, Lyla, a cello player, and Louis, the lead singer in a band, met one night. They shared a special connection but Lyla’s controlling father Thomas prevented her from meeting Louis again. Thomas was not pleased when Lyla discovered she was pregnant. Louis ultimately left his band. Eleven years later, Lyla finally learned that her baby had lived and she started looking for him right around the same time that Louis decided to try to find her again.
Most of August Rush focused in on Evan/August and his belief that his musical ability would somehow help him find his parents. He never stopped believing in that possibility even when some of the other children called him a freak or even when some adults made it clear how unlikely it was for that to happen. Overall, the plot was rather simple with everything being connected in some way, but that didn’t make it any less moving. This was a beautiful movie that deserves to be seen.
There wasn’t any action in August Rush so anyone in the mood for that type of movie needs to look elsewhere. Things progressed steadily, though somewhat slower in some spots. I didn’t think the movie dragged and I was never bored by what was happening. The pace did pick up a bit later in the movie without feeling rushed. I do think people need to be able to suspend their disbelief to fully enjoy the movie since a few things that happened weren’t the most realistic. Certain things were also predictable. That didn’t bother me at all since the movie was so good. There was a small amount of mystery in the movie, mostly connected to if Evan/August would be able to find his parents. I did feel like there was a little bit of suspense at one point as well that helped to keep things interesting.
August Rush did jump back and forth in time a few times. It started off by introducing August in his current situation before going back eleven years to show how Lyla and Louis met in a sort of flashback. The movie then moved back and forth in time a few more times before sticking to the present. It was very clear when a flashback type of scene was taking place and I never had any trouble keeping track of what was going on. I thought that the time settings were handled well. Most of the movie took place in New York City. That was where Lyla and Louis met. It was also where Evan/August was drawn to once he made the decision to actively try to find his parents. A couple of scenes took place in San Francisco and Chicago.
Music played a very important part in August Rush. Lyla and Louis were talented musicians in different types of music. The abilities were greatly magnified in their son who was a musical genius. Evan heard music in everything around him all the time. I really liked how the movie illustrated that, sharing with the audience how common, everyday sounds were musical to Evan. The first time he touched a guitar, he was able to play it, though it he did so in a slightly different way. Later, he was started writing music shortly after he first saw sheet music. He was also quickly able to play an organ as well. I know there are some people who are very gifted with musical abilities, but I don’t know how likely it is for someone to be able to do the things that Evan/August did. The music that was played throughout the movie was wonderful and fit in perfectly. Louis and Lyla were shown performing a few times as well.
Everything that was going on was connected to Evan in some way. He didn’t have an easy life at the orphanage, but he never lost his belief that it would be possible for him to use music to find his parents. He was incredibly talented and felt so much joy when he was playing or creating music. Freddie Highmore was absolutely amazing as Evan/August. In several scenes it was clear what he was feeling without him talking because of the expressions on his face, like the absolute joy when he was playing an instrument. This part further proves how talented he is. I did read that he learned how to play the guitar, organ, and learned how to conduct an orchestra for this movie.
Lyla was a talented cello player who had studied at Julliard. Her father was very controlling and obsessed with her musical career. She wasted no time in started to look for her son once she found out what really happened. Keri Russell was wonderful in the part. All the emotions Lyla went through were completely believable. She did learn to play the cello for the part. Louis had been in a rock band with his brothers when he met Lyla. He played guitar and was the lead singer. He gave up music for years, only starting to play again after he made the decision to look for Lyla. Jonathan Rhys Meyers was good in the part. He actually sang and played the different songs that Louis played during the movie. Russell and Meyers were both in Mission: Impossible III. I can’t remember for sure now, but I think they only had one fairly short scene together in that movie.
Wizard was a street musician who had the love of music but evidently not enough talent to become successful. He was sort of in charge of a group of children with differing levels of musical abilities that he sent out to perform in the streets for tips that he took. He recognized how talented Evan was and did some things to help him, but he wasn’t the kind, somewhat fatherly type of character I expected from the trailer. There were times when it seemed like he did care about Evan and seemed like a nice guy. Then there was other times when his darker side came out. Wizard’s biggest concern was exploiting Evan’s talents in a way that would bring him the most profit. Robin Williams was wonderful in the part.
Arthur was another young boy with some musical talent. He actually first met Evan and took him back to where he and the other kids were staying with Wizard. Arthur seemed to like Evan at first but then became jealous when Evan made more money from tips and Wizard started spending more time with him. Leon Thomas III was fine in the part. Terrence Howard showed up in a few scenes as Richard Jeffries, a man working for child services that was involved in Evan’s case. He had larger parts in The Brave One and Four Brothers William Sadler was briefly around as Lyla’s father Thomas.
Main Cast
Freddie Highmore - Evan/August Rush Terrence Howard - Richard Jeffries Jonathan Rhys Meyers - Louis Connelly Keri Russell - Lyla Novacek William Sadler - Thomas Novacek Leon Thomas III - Arthur Robin Williams - Wizard
Kirsten Sheridan - Director
August Rush was a very touching, beautiful movie. Certain things weren’t the most realistic, but that didn’t make the movie any less enjoyable. Fans of the cast should give it a chance.
DVDS. Estranged from his parents by circumstance and nudged toward a foster family, a young boy seeks out his long-lost folks and discovers prodigious...More at DeepDiscount.com
AUGUST RUSH is part romance part gentle fantasy but this sweet drama is all heart. When young cellist Lyla Keri Russell and rock musician Louis Jonath...More at Family Video
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