Named by an enigmatic New York street musician calling himself Wizard (Robin Williams), musical prodigy and orphan August Rush (Freddie Highmore) doesn’t believe his parents are dead or that they did not want him. In fact, if they could hear him play, hear his compositions inspired by the hustle and bustle of the world around him, they would all be reunited as a loving family for the very first time.

Jonathan Rhys Meyers and Keri Russell hear the music in Warner Bros. August Rush

Which, in some mysterious internal way beyond all rational reasoning, is exactly what one-time professional cellist Lyla Novacek (Keri Russell) subliminally wants. Twelve years ago she met Louis Connelly (Jonathan Rhys Meyers), an aspiring Irish singer-songwriter, on a moonlit rooftop overlooking Washington Square and each gave the other their heart. Now, after uncovering a monstrous lie committed by her father Thomas (William Sandler) and with the help of devoted social worker Richard Jefferies (Terrence Howard), she rushes back to the Big Apple in hopes of finding her long-lost son. What she doesn’t know is that Louis has also returned to the city, and the sounds of music calling them August’s dream of family might finally be close to becoming a reality.

I loved August Rush. It is sentimental and it definitely makes no apologies for aggressively pulling at the heartstrings but the film is so wonderfully acted and so confidentially directed by Kirsten Sheridan (daughter of In the Name of the Father filmmaker Jim) the copious amounts of cinematic sugar didn’t bother me in the slightest. By the times things were nearing their tearfully obvious conclusions I was so emotionally wrapped up in all of this I could have cared less I was being manipulated, and for a movie to accomplish such a feat on me in many ways rather unprecedented.

But when I say manipulated I really do mean it. Screenwriters Nick Castle and James V. Hart aren’t exactly subtle (one moment here inside a rundown theater brutally recalls some of the more noxious Lost Boys moments in the pair’s script for Steven Spielberg’s Hook) and their cloying allusions to Charles Dickens and J.M. Barrie are definitely annoying. Williams’ Fagin-like master of children is particularly obnoxious, and every time the picture shifted its focus onto him I couldn’t help but start to squirm uncomfortably within my theater seat.

Yet, spectacularly (and surprisingly), none of this every derails the picture. Sure some of it can be pretty maudlin and the air of magical whimsy permeating the story can be a bit hard to accept, but overall the heart of the picture is still so strong and so pure I couldn’t help but become swept up completely within it. August’s journey is good for the soul, the rapturous beauty of it all so all-encompassing just thinking about it again can’t help but fill me with unabashed joy.

Needless to say, the three leads are sure a large part of the credit for this. Noted bad boy Rhys Meyers eschews his normal villainous tendencies to showcase emotive depth I didn’t know he possessed, while young Finding Neverland scene-stealer Highmore continues to impress with another three dimensional performance belying his young age.

It is former T.V. darling Russell who completely stole my heart, however. For the second time this year (she was also pretty darn wonderful in the late Adrienne Shelly’s sublime Waitress) I couldn’t take my eyes off of her. The actress is just stunning, Russell delivering a striking portrait of such depth and tenderness she just literally leapt right off the movie screen.

All of this aside, this is still a motion picture that rises or falls based solely upon its musical score and composer Mark Mancina (working with a relative “dream team” of musicians and songsmiths) has certainly delivered on that front. There is an ethereal quality to what he has come up with that is absolutely mesmerizing, the film’s final symphony a triumph that echoes the plethora of diverse sounding melodies hinted at throughout the majority of the central character’s rather unique journey.

Sheridan showcases a deft touch behind the camera keeping much of the story’s mysticism grounded in a believable reality, while John Mathieson’s intimate photography eaves its way inside the narrative like a mystical window opening our eyes to an emotional wonderland we’ve only ever dreamed of visiting. Three-time Oscar nominee William Steinkamp edits brilliantly keeping things at just the right pace, while a supporting cast filled with talented children of all shapes and sizes deliver poetic moments of bliss I just didn’t see coming. 

So, like I said before, I loved August Rush. I knew what it wanted from me and I certainly had its ultimate journey pegged from the start, but the films musical cadences washed over me like an exquisite aria of hope and joy I couldn’t have stopped listening to no matter how hard I could have tried. It worked for me, sometimes blissfully, and when all is said and done nothing else really matters then that.

Film Rating: êêê  (out of 4)

Additional Links:

-  August Rush Theatrical Trailer