The Greatest Hits

Everybody has songs which bring them back to specific times in their lives. For Harriet Gibbons (Lucy Boynton), it happens literally as she travels back in time. She is trying to save her boyfriend Max Enders (David Corenswet) from a deadly crash. She meets David Park (Justin H. Min) at her self-help group.

This has an intriguing elevator pitch from filmmaker Ned Benson. He has a few good ideas in this movie, but the premise needs more work. There are basic problems stemming from the concept. First, she needs to keep going back to the death moment. It only makes sense. It also doesn't help that Max is forced by the story to dismiss her at every turn. It makes him look bad as a boyfriend. The whole movie gets dragged down by many minor issues.

This film has taken a good idea already used in Press Play and made an awful film. I watched them promote this on The One Show who clearly didn't do any research as they said what a great unique idea! The music used which is supposed to be the greatest hits are bad in my opinion. It feels like you never care about the main female character as it always feels like the film starts half way through which means you never care about any of the characters or the relationship with the dead boyfriend which you know nothing about. Watch Press Play it's loads better I actually read a review that said the opposite which I clearly don't agree with.

I thought the movie would have had a bit more adventure, as time travel was the main plot device. Over time the script became dull and a lot of the music was a distractor as opposed to tying in with the story. The writers needed to smooth out the rough edges on the script and simplify the story a bit. For example, the therapist, Harriet's best friend, and David's sister were useless characters who had nothing to contribute. I did appreciate the chemistry between David and Harriet, and that both characters suffered an immeasurable amount of grief.

If you're a record collector or someone who is a sucker for romantic movies that tug at your heart strings, you might like this. From my perspective, the fun moments were infrequent and forced. Think of the movie as a Powerpoint presentation that moves so quickly, that you don't have time to take in the details.

Lucy Boynton plays a VERY charming girl with a tragic past. One she can access with the help of a magical-and-music-driven form of time travel, where every song becomes a potential key to undoing her tragedy. A film about grief and permanent loss.

It's good, but not great.

The time-travel system is surprisingly well-defined and consistent, and it works because it is very simple. The posed question has weight, and becomes quite defining.

So what's wrong about it?

Well, the script shows its hand early, removing intrigue from the table, and becomes a question of "choice".

Then, and sadly for me, the core relationship doesn't work.. as I didn't get to like him at all, which makes it very difficult to understand why she would. The setup feels rushed, and every development feels forcefully special. It left me wanting more authenticity and less insistence.

Ultimately, the film is quite nice, in sentiment, creativity and execution. Everything works.. except for him. And it is a REAL shame, as I really wanted to like it!

As the movie states, "the most terrifying and amazing part of being a human being.. our capacity to move on". So, here I am, moving on.. But she is wonderful! Reason enough to watch. While tragic, she is ready for betterness and open minded. An excellent main character. Oh, and the music is also great! But a lack of a good core, and an ending I found particularly unsatisfying, keeps it from me loving it. Still, I enjoyed its potential and the great execution.

Its a intresting concept of travling through time due to certain music but this film does not deliver if you like the concept please watch press play 2022 this has tried coping the same storyline near enough with a few differances.

And as always the only 10/10 is a new account probably family members again even the 9/10 seems a bit suspect been a member 6 years and only ever reviewed this film.

Worth a watch if bored

Young Harriet discovers that art imitates life when she discovers that certain songs can literally transport her back in time. But as she relives the past through the romantic memories of her old boyfriend, her time travel collides with a new romantic adventure in her present. And so, on her journey through the hypnotic connection between music and memory, Harriet wonders if, even if she could change the past, she should.