Customer Reviews

Moonlight Serenade

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

A quick summary would be to watch this for Amy Adams, but since she does not get a speaking line until 16 minutes in (her first actual scene flashes by with no lines), and then her singing sounds dubbed (yet still beautiful) one could be wary of this title. It played well in the store if I left it on a chapter repeat where she sings, but I lost every single potential rental when anyone else was "acting" or some other scene was taking place.

The story follows some corporate/financial guy as he grinds through work in the day and plays the piano/sings by night. He happens to come across a beautiful lady who can sing and their paths become entangled - tangled in horrible writing, atrocious supporting acting, bad sets, poor sound, dimly lit interiors, etc. Writing issues: One scene shows our horribly single main guy in a bar getting hit on by Moon Bloodgood (who looked phenomenal as always - a very short role) but he turns her down for no reason - they could not even write one (what guy would ever turn her down??). Any scene that involves his workplace had customers laughing as they watched it - it looked like a stage play with flubbed lines and bad re-takes. Another scene with Amy singing has her hiding in the street shadows and when you can briefly see her the words do not match, and the list goes on.

The sound is average to poor, the picture quality is fine to average - but fake when the moon pictures flash by. The story was either trying to fit in as a musical/romance or a bad time at work film, neither worked on their own, but some of her singing was outstanding. No special features so 2 stars for her singing and zero for everything else.

If you like Amy Adams, you'll probably like this movie. If you like Jazz, particularly some of the standards, you'll probably quite enjoy this movie.

This movie was made in 2006, yet not released till now. In the meantime, lead actress Amy Adams has rightly become a huge star, getting Academy Award nominations for Junebug and Doubt, and having a huge hit with Enchanted (Full Screen Edition). I just saw Leap Year which is worth a look.

Moonlight Serenade has flaws, it's a B movie with an A actress. The music mostly, by Jazz virtuoso, Alex deFrancesco is absolutely excellent, and excellently performed by Amy Adams, who has a recording artist quality voice. Her main costar, Alec Watson resembles a young Sinatra in appearance. He has looks and charisma. I think he is a promising actor.

What I found lacking in the movie was not the acting, but the underdeveloped storyline, and the basic unbelievability of the characters behavior. Are we supposed to believe that a financial wizard would totally rethink his successful business strategy of selling short, and risk his career because he met a coatcheck girl, and aspiring singer. Are we supposed to believe that a narcissistic druggie boyfriend would suddenly act in his girlfriend's best interest. Are we supposed to believe that she, Chloe, would struggle to meet the piano player big Frank for an audition at a different club when they both already work in the same club. Why not just audition before the club opens? With some better direction the scenes could have played a little better, and the story could have been improved.

About halfway through this movie decides it's a musical, when the non musician played by Harriet Sansom Harris, (you may remember her as the ruthless agent on Frasier), suddenly and for no apparent reason bursts into song. This was disconcerting.

Other than that, I did enjoy the movie, in fact I watched it again. Safe to say Amy Adams will not be most remembered for this movie, yet this movie will be most remembered for Amy Adams. I though the best scene was at the end in the spotlight. Some people just shine in the spotlight, and belong there. Hope this was useful.

From my wife Sarah: We are big fans of Amy Adams, and so we can't understand how this movie happened to her. She's become a big star and has some great movies behind her. This was like a B movie, so it's surprising to see her in this.

Perhaps Amy chose this movie because she liked the idea of doing a musical. Personally I love musicals, and wish there were more made. But this one didn't work. The musical interludes were awkward, and sadly, often not very pleasing to listen to. There were a couple numbers that were nice, and the piano playing was really beautiful. But it was not enough to make this movie worth watching. As another reviewer mentioned, I noticed that you never saw the lead guy's hands playing the piano. It was too obvious that he wasn't playing.

We found the story trite and shallow, the characters unbelievable and the entire movie very, very dull. Amy did what she could with the script, but she didn't have much to work with. I admit I fell asleep for a few minutes. Amy if you read this - we're looking forward to you doing great things in the future. You're awesome.

I started to watch this movie but it didn't hook me. After half an hour I gave up. If you are a kiver of 'blues' music the music alone may hook you but I found the plot was dragging along at a VERY slow pace. There is some chemistry between the two lead actors but the story line leaves much to be desired. I'm not a blues fan so the music didn't interest me. So I'm giving this movie a thumbs down.

The stockbroker side of the story was interesting.
It should have been fleshed out.
I believe that the stockbroker would have become erratic due to his romantic involvement.
He should have hooked up with the smart rich cookie.
I would have eaten her up.

The poor girlfriend with a loser druggie boyfriend wasn't credible.
Take a smart talented woman & make her wait around for a loser.
Uh huh ... don't believe it

When she hooked up with the stockbroker whom was also a jazz musician, she would have pursued him.
Hello ... common sense & interests

The best performance in this movie was by Samsom Harris as the supporting stockbroker.
Not only was she credible, but human & caring ...

She deserves accolades for her portrayal of the role.

Harriet Sansom Harris really shines in this movie. Her supporting role helps to define the leading man's motivation for his behavior. Her role also quietly reinforces the theme that everyone wants affection, including average looking men and women. Harris gives an excellent performance in every scene including the one in which she sings. After seeing her in this movie I am looking for other DVDs in which she acts. While some reviewers pan the movie for its apparent low budget (revealed in simple scenes and wardrobe) I believe the simplicity helps focus the audience more on the characters. The simplicity adds a quality of realism as everyday life is simple both in the offices where we work and the bars we visit. Amy Adams's character could not afford elegant clothing anyway so simple was the way to go. This is a simple movie with solidly realistic performances by actors and musicians. The kind hearts are demonstrated by those interacting with the leading man. His focus is on flaws and potential failures so he does not see the kindness of those around him. Thanks to the director, the audience may see the kindness- but only if they choose as it is realistically understated. The music is high quality and is reason alone to see the movie. The musical director and the musicians deserve a lot of credit for their efforts. Amy Adam's performance as Chloe is intentionally not glamorous or perky. It is realistic and thus well done. Her innate charm and beauty is downplayed which means the viewer gets to see quality acting. Thus, if you are an Amy Adams fan you should own this DVD as it is a great example of her acting ability. Harriet Sansom Harris fans also should own this DVD. This is a romance movie so it has a happy ending.

Wow, mediocre is the highest rating I can give this piece of schlock. My husband surmised that perhaps it was a remake of a film done in the 30s or 40s. But after researching the film a bit, I discovered this was an "original" screenplay. Well, as original as boy meets girl and falls in love can be. The plot is shallow and predictable, the singing rates above nails on a chalkboard, and the acting by the protagonist could be done by a corpse only after rigor mortis set in. The piano playing is the salvation of the movie. If you made the mistake of buying or renting this title, listen to it while you eat dinner and save the 90 minutes for something else that night.

A slightly different take on the usual love story - more dramatic and musical a than typical romantic comedy and somewhat more thought provoking.

This is a made for T.V. movie that doesn't even meet that low standard. The plot is fantastical with some of the most inane dialogue ever to hit the screen. This must have been Amy's first gig - she was not believable as an aspiring jazz singer nor was the male lead. The Joey DeFrancesco Quartet is the only good thing about this movie. Too bad there doesn't seem to be a CD available just for the music.

Don't look for this at your neighborhood cineplex any time soon. In fact, the film was held back several years before being released to the "after market" of DVD and streaming video sales. One reviewer asks, "How could they do this to Amy Adams?" But more than likely it was the latter who saw what is inarguably a "little" movie as an opportunity to employ her vocal skills.

The "apparent" shortcomings of the film--in directing, editing, scripting, acting--make it an easy target for viewers expecting something else: a realistic "film noir" with music (like "Casablanca" or "To Have and Have Not") or an engaging romantic soaper with gripping conflict. It's neither. In fact, the film clearly resists any easy categorization.

Viewing it a second time, I tried to put myself in the place of the filmmakers, seeing the project from their viewpoint and intentions. Perhaps, the film is best described as an adult "fairy tale" with elements of film noir, Hollywood romance, and the screen musical mixed in. The plot is really secondary to the memorable moments it manages to capture--for example, Nate, the stock portfolio manager and former jazz pianist, suddenly becoming mesmerized by a siren song that wafts into his apartment from the street, its source (Amy Adams) unknown to him at the time. The film is about putting dreams and desire ahead of prosaic matters such as making money. Those things will take care of themselves if you have the imaginative sensibilities to follow your heart's desire. Personally, I found Nate's secretary, played by Harriet Sansom Harris, one of the most appealing characters in the film, especially when she, too, reveals her true inner feelings with a touching performance of the classic Billie Holiday standard, "Lover Man."

Everything ends up fine, of course, and everyone ends up happy, as should the viewer who willingly suspends disbelief and allows the film to work its own magic. Music is above all the expression of emotion, which makes music especially difficult to film (most attempts to film a jazz musician's genius--e.g. "Bird"--have fallen way short, leaving the average spectator with little more than the picture of a self-destructive junkie). So I give this movie credit for trying to do what has eluded most other films about music. And for those for whom this kind of film isn't their cup of tea, there's always the infectious music--alternately bluesy and sublime--of keyboardist extraordinaire Joey DeFranceso.