By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 2.8 cats
Director: Maggie Greenwald
Starring: Aidan Quinn | Emmy Rossum | Jane Adams | Janet McTeer | Pat Carroll
Country: united_states
Year: 2001
Running time: 112
IMDB: http://us.imdb.com/Details?0210299
Diane says: “This story of an early twentieth-century musicologist (Janet McTeer) experiencing music that speaks to her heart instead of her mind–in the North Carolina mountains–was just as hackneyed as the trailer threatened. Sets and blocking (and how often do I notice blocking in a movie??) are like a poorly done theater production; some of the editing of shots was clunky; script trite. There’s a gratuitous subplot that wastes Jane Adams’ acting skills.
“I went for the music, as you might guess, but it wasn’t any better than listening to a recording.” 2 cats
Marilyn says: “I thought Janet McTeer (and it would take someone of her ability) made the character believable…Pat Carroll was awesome (age allows such wonderful freedom)and deserves many nominations. I was less enthusiastic about Aidan Quinn and wondered if it was his blue eyes that were too distracting…I thought he needed brown contact lenses…at least for me to distance myself enough to see his character…!!! But, I did like it.”
Michael says: “A bad preview and a bad review or two can occasionally work wonders for a film. I went to SONGCATCHER with very low expectations and ended up enjoying it quite a bit.
“Janet McTeer plays Dr. Penleric, a doctor of musicology in the early 1900’s. After a disappointing turn of events at the college where she teaches, she goes to visit her sister (Jane Adams) who is running a school with another woman in the mountains of North Carolina. There she discovers a generations
old tradition of English folk songs being sung, and a love of music ingrained in a cultures few outsiders know about.
“Director Maggie Greenwald, who scored big with her last feature, THE BALLAD OF LITTLE JO, effectively conveys the power of music by letting transcendant moments of song undercut the melodrama of the events whirling around Dr. Penleric. About 15 minutes before the end of the film, there
are a couple events that threaten to go way over the top, but for the most part, I really admired the juxtaposition of the heightened drama of the action and the quiet power presented in the music.
“And the music was really what it was all about. All the singers, whether trained vocalists like Iris DeMent or newcomer Emmy Rossum (both of whom sport magnificent voices) or actors Janet McTeer, Pat Carroll or Aidan Quinn, rise to the occasion and convey the power of the music.
“Pat Carroll was a hoot as Viney Butler, who was born on the mountain and would die on the mountain, alternating between gruff hillbilly, to open- faced, laughing grandmother.” 3 cats
Scot says: “I’m pretty sure to nominate Pat Carroll for best supporting actress. Flawless performance.” 3 1/2 cats