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Begin Again is a 2013 American musical romantic comedy-drama film about a dejected music business executive forms a bond with a young singer-songwriter new to Manhattan.
Critic Consensus
Begin Again receives a broadly positive but tempered reception, with most critics finding it an enjoyable, music-driven film that works best as a light, feel-good experience. The film's original music and its use as an emotional vehicle are the most consistently praised elements across reviews. Common criticisms include clichéd characters and plotting, emotional hollowness, and an occasionally over-saccharine tone that stretches credibility. A minority of critics rate it highly as a near-perfect, deeply affecting work, while the majority place it in agreeable but forgettable territory.
9 rated reviews · 9 positive
AI-generated summary of 10 critic reviews · may contain errors
Report inaccuracyCritic Reviews (10)
Updated“The film also does a good job of not being preachy about relationships, and ends on the most perfect note. Seeing it once is just not enough, so by the time you're done reading this I'll already be at the movie theater, ready for the experience to begin again.”Read full review ↗
“Begin Again is almost hopeless in the cliched characters and story plots it trots out. Music, Dan says, can lend even mundane things a meaning. It does, it does.”Read full review ↗
“Begin Again is like a light frothy soufflé - enjoyable while it lasts but not memorable enough to seek out for repeats.”Read full review ↗
“Begin Again speaks to the viewer like few films have... Begin Again has neither heroes, nor anti-heroes. It just has people -- pathetic, frustrated, struggling people who are still clinging on to the hope that things will get better. And it has music; and sometimes that is enough too.”Read full review ↗
“A beautiful story about two people whose lives have been given set-backs. They find each other and in helping each other, they start to move forward. The pain which they feel passes and hope blooms again. Beautifully shot with amazing music, which you will enjoy and sing along to, this film makes it an all-round treat for the senses. Keira Knightley and Mark Ruffalo bring a connection to life within the film. You will thoroughly enjoy the movie and you will be left wanting for more at the end of it. And you will want it to "Begin Again."”Read full review ↗
“Decidedly different from super-budget, superhero fare, this one is sometimes sappy but mostly engaging and definitely driven by music.”Read full review ↗
“Music as a medium of expression can never be underrated. Be it love, infatuation, indifference, scorn, or even anger, you can arrange it all on a staff, throw in words and voila, you have an outlet for your deepest feelings. Begin Again is one such film that arranges many emotions, strung together by fairly realistic happenings.”Read full review ↗
“'Begin Again' is a beautifully crafted product filled with good, earnest performances that emanate sincerity. However the movie's emotionally kind of hollow by the end and low on plot. You will enjoy the movie, but I doubt there would be much to remember from your experience once you've stepped out of the cinema.”Read full review ↗
“Overall, the film with its unconventional choices in the relationships combined with actual songs makes it a simply feel-good film.”Read full review ↗
“The writing has some awkward turns. Some dialogues and scenes stretch the sugary all-is-well credo too far, which do not stop Begin Again from being an immensely enjoyable musical. The original music by Gregg Alexander is intoxicating Mitchellian graft.”Read full review ↗
Cast & Crew
Cast
- Mark Ruffalo · Dan Mulligan
- Keira Knightley · Gretta
- Adam Levine · Dave Kohl
- Hailee Steinfeld · Violet Mulligan
- Catherine Keener · Miriam
- James Corden · Steve
- CeeLo Green · Trouble Gum
- Mos Def · Saul
- John Carney
- Anthony Bregman
- Tobin Armbrust
- Judd Apatow
- Gregg Alexander
- Yaron Orbach
- Andrew Marcus
Director
Writer
Music
Cinematography
Editing
Details
- Release Date
- 18 July 2014
- Runtime
- 1h 44m
- Language
- English
User Ratings & Reviews
8 ratings · 1 with a written review
















