Danny Collins (2015)

Genres

Comedy, Drama, Music

Director

Dan Fogelman

Country

USA

Cast

Al Pacino, Annette Bening, Jennifer Garner, Bobby Cannavale, Christopher Plummer, Nick Offerman, Cesar Evora, Josh Peck, Fernando Colunga, Michelle Vieth, Katarina Cas, Melissa Benoist, Giselle Eisenberg, Eric Michael Roy

Storyline

Agings folk singer Danny Collins (Al Pacino) decides to change his life and rediscover his family when he finds a 40-year-old undelivered letter written to him by John Lennon. 

Opinion

Danny Collins came to my attention because there's Al Pacino who doesn't play neither a gangster nor a criminal and I gave it a change. And he was impressive. Way more impressive than the film itself. 

Why? Because there simply isn't a lot new in this film. It basically tells a story that has already been told a million times before. Actually, it manages to tells two stories that have already been told a million times before, that of an ageing musician who decides to turn his life around and that of an ageing and absent parent who feels guilty about that and decides to be part of his son's life. I would have loved the writers to go with the John Lennon letter and focus more on that but instead they decided to go on the tedious road of clichés. 

The title character isn't anything special either. He's just another man who has lived a life made of excesses, wants to change it but keeps fucking it up. He isn't a very interesting character either to be honest, but with a strong performance, Al Pacino manages to make you root for him while he charms his way into his son's life and flirts with hotel manager Mary, delightfully portrayed by Annette Bening. However, the courting between Pacino and Bening gets a little repetitive and boring after a while.

So for the most, the script isn't the film's strongest suit, but the dialogue is actually pretty clever. Also, Folgelman's director (Crazy, Stupid, Love.) is good and the film ends up being a little emotional and humorous dramedy.