Alk14x

I watched this on e4 when it was first broadcast in 2011. It was an instant hit for me. I loved the clichéd characters but more so the nuances of each individual. Ten years later after not being able to search for it on Netflix it appeared and it felt just the same as all that time before.

The first season is a straight 10/10. Funny, highly watchable and endearing. If you didn't connect with the characters by the end of the season then you might have problems empathising with people because it was heartwrenching.

The second season is a let down compared to the high standards of the first season. Judging by the number of reviews this is one of them shows that failed to reach a demographic effectively but I know that if more people saw this show it would be endeared by many more.

Once is a raw, witty, infectious film. On second viewing, I found it to rise in my favour. This is in no part down to the composition of songs that are so beautifully constructed and sung that they could be hits in current popular culture.

The two leads Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova (only seventeen at time of film) are named merely Him and Her. We don't notice this. It's not to show off a stylistic choice. What do we get from their names?

The film doesn't spend time on particulars. It alludes to the character's respective past, and the predicaments of their situation, predominantly from their music. Nonetheless, the conversational narrative is charming. From the get go neither character pulls any punches in what they think about the other. In a Dublin town centre Her questions Him why he doesn't play the song he's performed at daytime. Him tells her that people want to hear familiar music and the ten cents she gave him evidences his point.

People may question Marketa Irglova's accent as she is a Czech immigrant living in Ireland. Although at times the Irish accent came through a little forcefully, it truly appeared indicative of someone who had moved to an alien country and was learning from imitation.

This is not a film that I'd ever choose to watch. In fact, it was my sister who picked this film. I thought I'd be gone in a few minutes - I was tempted to but I wanted to gauge how bad the film was after seeing the clichéd Aunt.

However, with such character clichés and a following coincidence where Indy finds out more about her Mother's experience, this film grew on me. I stopped caring as much about the aforementioned and became involved with the protagonist. This is directly due to the solid performance of Paris Warner who plays Indy. Her portrayal is naturalised of someone who has grown to be treated subserviently. And given the anti-Cinderella stamp (based on the novel by Jenni James), Warner was able to evade the synonymous character to some extent, allowing the character to have her own story.