Recently, I've been busy with work, and I've been lazy when I get home. I've been planning to write something for a long time, but I've been putting it off again and again. After watching this movie, I always feel that something is expanding in my heart, and I feel that if I don't write something, it will come out.
The movie was introduced to me by a friend, and when I first saw the name, I thought it was another one of those clichéd love stories. I did not wait for me to refuse, my friend said: the movie is very good! I was moved, to know that my friend's vision is very high. First, I ran to Baidu to check out the movie. Musical drama? What the hell? It's so boring! It's not another one of those elegant-looking things with beautiful voices from the beginning and a few lines in the middle, is it?
Look at the synopsis: "August Fever" tells the story of a young but gifted bar singer from Ireland (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) who meets a young female cellist (Keri Russell) in New York City's Washington Square and quickly falls in love, only to be immediately forced to part ways, and the product of their one-night stand - -Auguste Rush is orphaned as a result.
Ten years later, a grown-up August (Freddie Highmore) is left to make a living selling on the streets of New York City, and then, thanks to the help of a mysterious stranger, the Wizard (Robin Williams), August begins to utilize his extraordinary musical talent to find his parents, who were forced to separate on the day of his birth.
The first part of the plot is pretty bloodthirsty, and the second part is a bit of a novelty, with an orphan relying on his musical talent to find his parents, and I'm starting to look forward to this movie a bit.
The beginning of the movie is uncharacteristic, with flashbacks about how this ten year old boy named Evan Taylor listens to nature, and how his parents (Louis and Laila) fall in love at first sight, only to be separated one night later due to a misunderstanding, and how in the end he's sent to an orphanage. These can only be considered background descriptions of the movie, and are pretty average from a storytelling perspective! One of the great bits (the key is the good music score) is the part where his parents fall in love at first sight, the harmonica played by the seller under the big arch and the lyrics sung by Louis, the title of the song is "Moondance" (it's a bit of fun to pick up a girl under the light of a full moon singing "Dancing Moon").
Returning to the present, Evan Taylor escapes the orphanage and embarks on a solo journey to find his parents "following the music, as the moon told him." On the way, he meets a kind driver who takes him to New York City in search of Jeffrey Reed, a kindly man from the Department of Children's Services. First time in the big city Evan is curious about everything, in the subway rhythmic impact of the sound of the track, Evan seems to listen to the pulse of the city, in the subway wheels and railroad track impact generated by the beat, all the sounds of the city (footsteps, skateboards rolling, barking,) are mixed into a symphony of the city.
As he conducts the symphony, chaos ensues: Geoffrey's business card is blown away, and the only person he can contact is gone. Walking alone on the streets of New York, he follows Arthur, a kid selling his wares, to an abandoned theater (the habitat of a group of homeless children, who have a leader called Wizards, and before going to bed Wizards plays a small piece of music on a harmonica, which the sensitive ones should be able to hear, it's the same piece of Moondance that precedes it). Evan's presence didn't bring the slightest bit of attention to anyone. After everyone else had gone to bed, Evan gently strummed Arthur's guitar (the first time in his life he had ever touched a musical instrument), and instantly immersed himself in the sound of the music, he played a fast-paced tune ("Bari Improv") by rhythmically tapping different parts of the guitar. Looking at his happy smile, I was sincerely happy for him that a prodigy with a magical gift had finally met his destiny - music!
Wizards spoke with Evan late into the night as they explored music. He says that music is actually all around us, and that we can feel it not because only a few of us can hear it, but because only a few of us are willing to listen.
The next day, after performing on the streets, the Wizards told him we're going to tour so your parents have a chance to find you through music, and for that we should get a stage name. Evan didn't hesitate to say "Found!" and at the suggestion of the Wizards, Evan agreed to go by the stage name August Rush (the title of the movie).
Standing on the street, Evan has no sheet music, no set tunes, just an effort to show people what he can do. Either he taps out the rhythm with passion in the hope that his parents will hear his voice, or he caresses the strings of his instrument with sadness at the tender sight of children and their mothers in the square.......
A few days later, because of Arthur, the police search the place where the street children gather. To help Arthur escape the police, Evan runs loose. Before getting separated, Wizards warns Evan never to reveal his real name in front of others or he will be sent back to the orphanage. On a cold night Evan sneaks into the warm church. The church choir is rehearsing "Raise It Up" - an uplifting song (80th Academy Award nominee for Best Music). Early the next morning, Hepo, the angelic little black girl who has already spotted Evan, teaches him the concept of pentatonic music and heads out the door for school. After learning the principles of pentatonic music, Evan actually began to compose his own music while listening to the noise of the street outside! In his words: I hear these and I just write them down. During the little girl's time at school, he actually painted the little girl's piano room with pentatonic scores! And even played the church organ (which is the most complex instrument in the world) without a teacher!
The good priest was responsible enough to send such a great talent to the Julliard School of Music (the capital of American music)! During his six months here, Evan was given a systematic and complete study, and his talent was fully explored and unleashed. His own composition "Auguste Rhapsody in C Major" was fully recognized by the school and was prepared to be the finale of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra's concert.
While the concert is in the midst of intensive preparations, the Wizards show up (Evan is his tool for profit). Threatening Evan with the knowledge of his real name, the Wizards take him back to his turf to stand back up on the streets and sing.
Re-standing on the streets, Evan is unmotivated to play because of his dashed hopes (of finding his loved ones through music). At this point, Louis, who has come to New York to find Lila, is attracted to Evan, who is casually strumming his guitar, and the two play a song called "Dueling guitars" (which is awesome!) The two play a song called "Dueling guitars" (awesome!). Louis told Evan: If I were studying at the Julliard School of Music and there was a concert for me, I would do whatever it took to get there. Music is something you can never give up, no matter what happens, because it's the only thing that can cover you in your most difficult moments and make you forget everything.
In the evening, Evan finally made up his mind to rush to the square against all odds, finally arriving at the last minute to conduct his concert. Finally he gets his wish and finds his loved ones through music.
The movie is a two-pronged story, with Evan's experience as the main thread and Evan's parents' (Louis and Lila) search for each other as the secondary thread. And yet this 11-year-old is always something you can't help but be moved by. For his sense of music, his talent, and his untutored understanding and sensitivity to his instrument.
It's easy to see that the movie is really all about good people, from the unnamed truck driver to Jeffrey Reed of Children's Services, from the little black angel Hepburn to the priests, from the teachers at Juliet Academy to the street kid Arthur and the many, many more who have given little Evan a helping hand. It is safe to say that without any of these people, Evan's Rhapsody would not have been possible. It's the same old song: If only everyone showed a little love, the world would be a better place tomorrow.
Also, the whole movie feels less about writing about young Evan's search for his family with music than it does about showing Evan's search for his family with music.
Here's a list of some of the very best tunes and lyrics. It took a lot of effort to find these songs!
"Moondance"
well it's a marvelous night for a moondance
with the stars up above in your eyes
a fantabulous night to make romance
'neath the cover of October skies
......
(This song is a snippet of the male lead's choice of vocals, and it feels better than van morrison's original and fits the story scene better)
"Bari Improv"
"Raise It Up" (the lyrics to this one are so long I can't read them ......)
"Dueling guitars"