Music From Another Room is a romantic comedy that follows the exploits of Danny, a young man who grew up believing he was destined to marry the girl he helped deliver as a five year old boy when his neighbor went into emergency labor. Twenty-five years later, Danny returns to his hometown and finds the irresistible Anna Swann but she finds it easy to resist him since she is already engaged to dreamboat Eric, a very practical match. In pursuit of Anna, Danny finds himself entangled with each of the eccentric Swanns including blind, sheltered Nina, cynical sister Karen, big brother Bill and dramatic mother Grace as he fights to prove that fate should never be messed with and passion should never be practical.
Reviews
Maybe a bit over the top romantic but I always enjoyed this movie, it is well acted and particularly from Brenda Bethyn and Jennifer Tilly, which I felt they were the true stars that glued this story together. Tilly's story seems to have somehow predominance over Gretchen Moll's and the latter lacks a bit of chemistry with Jude Law, but he gives his dreamer character justice. My favourite scene is when Grace's passes, she goes with such a bang! I only bought this movie because of its sound track, but I was pleasantly taken by it, I found myself watching it already several times with a nice piece of cake and a cup of tea in boring cold afternoons. Oscar worth? No, but still a nice story.
Music From Another Room is a film that makes you fall in love with movies and that perfect girl you've always had a crush on but never dated.Simple in it essence, yet, if you explore it further it must have been truly a labor of love.It begins with 5 year old Danny helping his father a Military Doctor to deliver a baby girl when her birth was held up by a pair of coiled umbilical cord around her neck.Little Danny later vows to marry the baby girl when he grows up.Flash 25 years into the future,5 year old boy has now morphed into Jude Law(Danny) and baby girl is now the lovely Gretchen Mol(Anna Swan)all blonde and gorgeous.Danny,lately just back into the neighborhood of Los Angeles after spending 25 years in London has just broken up with his girlfriend.As fate would have it,boy meets girl again (Jude Law meets Gretchen Mol)The catch is,Girl is engaged to be married to a rich,stuffy and decidedly boring Eric.Will boy win girl?Will fate intervene?Will true love triumph?Are they meant for one another?Or was it all just an interesting experience 25 years ago?I saw Music From Another Room in 2004 on cable TV at a time when I was an intern in Paediatrics.I guess it was the opening track 'Day after Day' by Julian Lennon that persuaded me to sit down and watch this quaint little film.Seeing Jude Law as one of the credited actors was also a bonus.This movie was so many things at so many level for me.I was in LOVE with this cute pharmacist at the hospital where I was working and I was in need of some inspiration.She was already seeing someone at the time much like Anna Swan was when Danny stumbled into her again after 25 years.Seeing Danny's passion for Anna was my encouragement to throw caution aside and pursue without fear or shame.Danny's love was indeed so enormous it spills into everyone's life in the movie and indeed including mine.Passion makes you do crazy things and it is passion and love that truly inspires.I even borrowed Danny's love poem to woo that cute pharmacist. 'Wanted,wanted Anna Swan etc,Armed and dangerous is Anna Swan,My heart a bell already struck etc etc'I thought it was such a delightfully witty,endearing and charming little poem and still do!I thought that Jude Law and Gretchen Mol made a very lovely couple indeed.The chemistry was tangible and the attraction was undeniable.Whilst Jude Law was undoubtedly the Star of the film it was Gretchen Mol's Anna Swan that caught my heart whilst Jude Law's Danny gave the movie its' Heart.Gretchen Mol's character Anna Swan struck a chord with me.I could only wish that I too like Danny could one day end up with someone remotely like her in the future.The melding of classical literature,that of the late great Russian novelist Leo Tolstoys' Anna Karenina with contemporary character was sheer genius.I think Charlie Peter had it spot on at the ending, reuniting Danny with Anna his true love at the train station.Life should always be this good!Danny's range of expression throughout the entire movie conveyed his character's feeling remarkably well and Gretchen Mol's portrayal of Anna's own inner conflict torn between passion for Danny and guilt over Eric was extremely touching.She was perfect for the role and so lovely! I loved her look of adoration for Danny when she stole a glance at him as Eric read the anonymous poem written by Danny to Anna during the garden party and her expression of rapt anticipation and expectation at both the coin tossing scene first at Klammer's bakery and later at the train station as Danny was about to leave for Atlanta.Despite the movie's flaw as pointed out by so many before me,Music from Another Room is still my favorite romantic comedy.It is its little imperfections that makes it truly a unique gem.Only the wearer could appreciate it for its sentimental value.Congratulations to both Jude Law and Gretchen Mol for convincing and spirited performances and writer/director Charlie Peter for sharing with us his delightful little vision.Music from Another Room is my idea of that perfect little movie that is both beautiful and charming in its simplicity that manages to restores one's faith in Love,Passion and Fate.It is truly a heart warming tale that I urge new viewers to share with your loved ones.
The pivotal birthing scene is absolutely ridiculous and inaccurate. I caught the last half of the movie on cable and liked it very much. Then I watched it from the beginning and the film was ruined for me. For the record, I am an obstetrician. Although a cord around the neck (nuchal cord) can cause fetal distress in labor it will not impede birth. A cord around the neck cannot be diagnosed by palpation until after the baby's head is delivered. Although a hand could be passed into the uterus to palpate such a cord it would be extremely painful to both the woman in labor and the person doing the exam. Such intra-uterine techniques were used prior to the twentieth century and required extreme strength on the part of the accoucher (birth attendant) and took a long time to complete and were fraught with danger. They are simply NOT used in modern day obstetrics.
This movie was just plain sweet. I loved it. It's nice to see movies that are romantic and funny during these trying times we live in. I would recommend this movie to anyone that is in love, looking for love, or just needs something to warm their heart. Jude Lawe was excellent, as were Mol and the rest of the cast. I liked the other story lines that flowed along with it and really enjoyed how the ending brought it all together and tied up all the lose ends. This movie was predictable but had you cheering on Jude Lawe and wishing you could be the one he was in love with. The filming was well done, the cinematography simple yet beautiful.