Music and Lyrics
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A washed-up '80s pop star gets a chance at a comeback when reigning pop diva Cora Corman invites him to write & record a duet with her, but there's a problem--Alex hasn't written a song in years; he's never written lyrics and he has to come up with a hit in a matter of days.
What critics thought
A mild, middle-of-the-road romantic comedy that critics found neither bad enough to dismiss nor good enough to fully champion. Grant's pop-star parody and the music-video pastiche drew the most consistent praise, while the central chemistry with Barrymore divided opinion — some found their extended two-person scenes genuinely charming, others felt the film never actually comes to life despite its agreeable leads.
“the type of modern Hollywood production that aspires to nothing more than the competent dispensing of mild amusement and easy emotion”
A.O. Scott·The New York Times
“Lawrence's take on pop music success is exactly right, satiric without being absurdist, and therefore a prize worth the effort”
Mick LaSalle·San Francisco Chronicle
“makes everything about three times more obvious than it needs to be; as a director, he needs to edit himself better as a writer”
Todd McCarthy·Variety
“Grant and Barrymore make a reasonable odd couple, and both have charm, but this never comes to life”
Peter Bradshaw·The Guardian
“the film limps along like someone trying to tap dance in flippers”
Philip French·The Observer
Genres
Comedy, Music, Romance
Cast & Crew
Marc LawrenceDirector
Drew BarrymoreSophie Fisher
Hugh GrantAlex Fletcher
Brad GarrettChris Riley
Haley BennettCora Corman
Brooke TansleyJanice Stern
Aasif MandviKhan
Zak OrthDavid Newbert
Scott PorterColin Thompson
Andrew WyattPop Guitar Player
Xavier GrobetCinematographyMusic and Lyrics
A washed-up '80s pop star gets a chance at a comeback when reigning pop diva Cora Corman invites him to write & record a duet with her, but there's a problem--Alex hasn't written a song in years; he's never written lyrics and he has to come up with a hit in a matter of days.
What critics thought
A mild, middle-of-the-road romantic comedy that critics found neither bad enough to dismiss nor good enough to fully champion. Grant's pop-star parody and the music-video pastiche drew the most consistent praise, while the central chemistry with Barrymore divided opinion — some found their extended two-person scenes genuinely charming, others felt the film never actually comes to life despite its agreeable leads.
“the type of modern Hollywood production that aspires to nothing more than the competent dispensing of mild amusement and easy emotion”
A.O. Scott·The New York Times
“Lawrence's take on pop music success is exactly right, satiric without being absurdist, and therefore a prize worth the effort”
Mick LaSalle·San Francisco Chronicle
“makes everything about three times more obvious than it needs to be; as a director, he needs to edit himself better as a writer”
Todd McCarthy·Variety
“Grant and Barrymore make a reasonable odd couple, and both have charm, but this never comes to life”
Peter Bradshaw·The Guardian
“the film limps along like someone trying to tap dance in flippers”
Philip French·The Observer
Genres
Comedy, Music, Romance
Cast & Crew
Marc LawrenceDirectorDrew BarrymoreSophie FisherHugh GrantAlex FletcherBrad GarrettChris RileyHaley BennettCora CormanBrooke TansleyJanice SternAasif MandviKhanZak OrthDavid NewbertScott PorterColin ThompsonAndrew WyattPop Guitar PlayerXavier GrobetCinematographyRent & Buy