ThiefHott Too much of everything

Jeanskynebu the audience applauded

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

smatysia A movie that does not come out with huge aspirations. Which is fine. It just wants to tell its little story. Set in and filmed in the working class (or lower) neighborhoods of Dublin, it tells the story of a young entrepreneur who starts a band. Instead of heavy metal or poisonous rap, he/they want to do Sixties soul music, despite their Irishness and whiteness. There is a fair amount of subtle humor. I had neither seen nor heard of any of the actors, but then again, I rarely saw much Irish cinema. I was especially impressed by Angeline Ball, one of the back-up singers. The movie was, well, charming is the word that most comes to mind. You probably have to like that sort of music to like the movie, but if you do, check it out.

grantss Dublin, Ireland. Local entrepreneur Jimmy Rabbitte is putting a band together (which he will manage). Through friends, contacts, auditions and blind luck he puts together his band - The Commitments. He decides what music they will play - soul. We see how the pieces come together, the auditions, the skepticism from his parents, their first rehearsal, how things start to come together and their first few gigs. We also see the relationships in the band, particularly the friction. Soon they are standing on the threshold of stardom.Wonderfully funny and entertaining with a fantastic soundtrack.Great plot, based on a book by Roddy Doyle, showing how the average band forms and develops and the internal turmoil. Wonderful dialogue and scenes - incredibly funny, with quotable lines coming thick and fast. However, the thing that tips the movie over from great to masterpiece is the music. Fantastic music, well made and produced with some great concert scenes to add to the vibe. Performances from a cast of then-unknowns are spot-on. Great casting, as director Alan Parker would have been going out on a limb with many of them. Wonderfully vibrant and funny, yet profound, movie.

RResende Alan Parker is a generous filmmaker, in the sense that he allows himself to merge into the fabric of his themes, to allow the film to have its own life. That's something i wouldn't appreciate in Kar Wai or Welles, whose personal way to bend stories is the very reason why i go to their films. But Parker seems to have his biggest strength in understanding what the film needs, and allowing it to breath. That's a great quality.Here he tackles soul music appropriated by irish workers, and Dublin, as tokens for the irish spirit. The mere quality and expression in the execution of the songs justifies the cult this film as grown around it since it came out. The music is not original, everything we hear are covers of songs for the masters of soul, but the interpretations are so engaging that you can hardly not be driven by them. It worked so well, that a band composed by several actors from this film, performing under the name of the band in the film still has a career today, still performs live gigs. Among all the good things there is to say about the musical performances, i'll mention the lead singer's face. Andrew Strong's voice delivers all the passion necessary for these songs to work. But his face, apparently so unappealing, forms a series of otherworld expressions, shapes, painful phrases coming out of some upper fantastic world. Parker understood it, and that's why he frames it so often when he sings, in close-up. He engages us in ways hard to understand. Of course than we have a funny plot that surrounds the musical moments, but that's a mere support. The music is the main character, not the supporting bits to a central story.Irish jokes and the black soul of America. That has proved a powerful mix. This film deserves credit, it's a fine moment.My opinion: 4/5http://www.7eyes.wordpress.com

Fabrice_Fan In my book, The Commitments really does get a 10/10! At the risk of sounding like a squealing fan, I really can't think of anything I didn't like about it.The film as a whole is refreshingly free of the clichés you usually find in movies of this sort - the characters are original, there is no cheesy romantic subplot (THANK you!), no predictable plot twists. It is all tied together into a remarkably light, funny, and ultimately hopeful movie.The music is fabulous as well, and I believe it is actually the actors singing their own songs - they do a wonderful job on both accounts.The Commitments is such a great little movie. It's too bad it doesn't get more viewings.