Getting Ready to See August Rush

I don’t have to say again how loopy excited I was to go see this film. Hoped for by the adoption truth lovers as THE film to get get people to understand some of the complexities of adoption separation, I ignored the fact that I spent the majority of the previous 56 hours in bed with a flu and bounced out the door.

Bonnie picked me out a few minutes after seven, and I hurriedly raced to throw Tristan a good night kiss (Scarlett was over at Grandma’s ), said bye to Rye and boogied. We were prepared.. armed with tissues, mentally prepared to cry our faces off, and with a pocketbook full of Origins-USA brochures for other adoption sufferers that the movie might draw out. We got our sodas and candies and found our theater seats. I get spying into the faces of other movie goers, trying to “see” who might carry that mom look in their eyes. But you know, we really don’t wear a scarlet letter, so I couldn’t tell.

The movie was relatively filled. I was thinking, “wow..why would so many people be into this adoption movie?” But as Bonnie pointed out.. it was Saturday night.. and then too, I don’t know what other adult, calm not violent movies were being offered that day. Mostly older couples, a few groups of women, a few women alone, but who might have just wanted a feel good flick or who might just be a music geek?

I am so prepared to cry, I almost get weepy at the credits.. and then it begins..ahh………..

huh? wait..wait..ohhhhh..poop…phshaw..

And Survey Says; August Rush.. eh

It was..cute. Feel good. I would say more for the music geek. Lots and lots of music geek stuff. The kid, August, was pretty freaky weird of a character. Billed as a musical prodigy, he acted in this odd stare allot and invade personal space way.. more like a slightly autistic idiot savant way really. All big and doe eyed, he kept up this weird fascinated face until he was making music and then he had on this gleeful joy face on. A bit annoying.

August Rush Doesn’t Touch Adoption Really

Mom, Lila, Kerry Russel, was endearing, but had a similar doe eyed look. There were a few scenes where she had the opportunity to demonstrate the depth of loss, but really only skimmed the surface. Granted she thought that she had lost the baby at birth and lost then , too, he desired to play music, he ability to be happy was implied, but again, glossed over.
When, at her father’s deathbed, he confesses to choosing adoption “for her” and forging her signature, her anger was also minor league. Granted, she only wanted to know about her child, and dropped everything to find him in desperation, but I would have kicked dear old Dad in the teeth, deathbed or not.

Bonnie got ticked off when she went to find him at the Department of Children’s services or something and the “helpful” worker admonished her with the “Why do you want him NOW?”.. Of course, Lila’s reasoning is that she only knew of him now..so she was really immune to this line of questioning, but many of us are not.. so it spoke of that damned if you do, damned if you don’t mentality of many. Again..could have been explored so much more.
Ok so… blah blah Hollywood.. lots of music a few cute lines.. Robin Williams was a creep..things very, very far fetched.. etc. A bit contrived..yeah, just a bit.’
Yes, there was one very touching scene where father and son just happenstance to met in Washington Square Park and bond over their love of music and unknowingly shared DNA.

Oh and the things that were really, really very annoying..

• kid gets freed for adoption in ’91? Like a healthy white infant boy would EVER spend his whole life in the “Walden home for Boys” orphanage in NY?? No way!! That baby would have been snatched up in an instant! And like all the kids in that “home” were white.. pure BS.
• no one seems to get real upset that Dad forged mom’s signature. Not her, not the social worker guy. and no authorata’ either.
• Julliard takes in, free on would assume, a kid who has no parents? Like who OK’d THAT? Who approved? The minister who found the kid? God?

And yeah, much more of that. I mean, it was cute. It was entertaining. It was enjoyable enough, but it wasn’t what I had hoped.

Yes, all rejoice when protagonist meet as serendipitously played out at the end. Woohoo, happy ending. Yeah, the music was pretty. And yes, the overall finial feeling was that finding your family feels good, but….oh, it could have been so much more.

Less plot twists and false suspense, almost meetings and scenes of ships passing in the night and we might have had a movie of a bit more substance, but … then it would not have been a Hollywood feel good music geek movie with an adoption related plot line thrown in..then it would have been the movie one of us would have made about adoption…and that hasn’t happened yet.