Begin Again Family Review

A chance encounter between a down-and-out music-business executive and a young singer-songwriter, new to Manhattan, turns into a promising collaboration between the two talents.Gretta (Keira Knightley) and her long-time boyfriend Dave (Adam Levine) are college sweethearts and songwriting partners who decamp for New York when he lands a deal with a major label. But the trappings of his new-found fame soon tempt Dave to stray, and a reeling, lovelorn Gretta is left on her own. Her world takes a turn for the better when Dan (Mark Ruffalo), a disgraced record-label exec, stumbles upon her performing on an East Village stage and is immediately captivated by her raw talent. From this chance encounter emerges an enchanting portrait of a mutually transformative collaboration, set to the soundtrack of a summer in New York City.—The Weinstein CompanyIn New York City, Gretta James and Dan Mulligan meet by chance at the end of arguably one of the worst days in both their lives. Native Brit Gretta, primarily a songwriter who sings on the side, only came to New York to support her musical collaborator and boyfriend Dave Kohl, who is on the brink of pop music stardom as one of the songs he wrote and performed was featured on a movie soundtrack, he getting a record deal in the process. They broke up earlier in the day on Gretta discovering that he has been having an affair with one of the executives at the record label. Middle-aged Dan has long been divorced from Miriam, his wife of eighteen years, they now barely on speaking terms. He has just had another strained encounter with their fourteen year old daughter, Violet, in whose life he has largely been absent since the split in his destructive behavior, which includes self-medicating with alcohol to cope. Not having signed anyone in seven years, he is fired by his partner Saul from the independent record label, Distressed Records, that he founded. All these items in combination, including having no money, result in Dan being on the brink of suicide. Gretta and Dan meet when he hears her sing at a bar, her friend, Steve, the bar act that evening, who was able to convince reluctant her to sing a song she wrote. While no one else in the bar seemed really to pay attention to her performance, Dan could visualize the potential in her and the song in a produced setting. Eventually being up front with her that he has no money and is no longer officially with Distressed, he is still able to convince her to take a chance on him and herself in a musical collaboration. Without the resources, they will have to get others to buy into their vision, it ending up being an ode to New York City of sorts. Regardless of what happens on the musical side of the collaboration, Gretta and Dan may provide that much needed external point of view for the other to get their respective lives back on track in a comprehensive manner.—HuggoSongwriting duo, Gretta, and her long-time musician boyfriend, Dave, had been dating since college when they decided to seek their fortune in bustling New York City. However, when Dave is signed by a major record label, temptation proves too powerful for him to resist, and the couple calls it quits. Crestfallen, Gretta fights to get back on her feet until one night, while performing in the East Village, she catches the eye of Dan, a famous and once-respected music executive who has since fallen on hard times. Enchanted by Gretta's powerful voice and skilful songwriting, Dan, who hasn't produced anything in the last seven years and has lost everything, convinces her to join him in a collaboration that will transform them both over the course of one unforgettable summer. What will it take to begin again, and revive a career?—Nick Riganas