★★★

John Carney is a terrific storyteller. In his previous films, he has tapped into using the creative spark around creating music to tell narratives about people lost in life, seeking comfort and companionship, and searching for a relevancy to those around them.

From the iconic, Oscar-winning “Falling Slowly,” from 2007’s Once, the tender, heartfelt “Lost Stars” from 2013’s Begin Again, or “Drive It Like You Stole It” from the 2016 film Sing Street, Carney’s films build to a musical moment that almost always generates a defining, memorable movie moment. Though “Falling Slowly” comes early in Once, it sets a tone. Carney uses songs in film like a songwriter composes an irresistible hook or chorus - if the song connects, everything else falls into place. 

So what happens when that song fails to rise to the occasion or serve as that signature moment that enhances character and creates story? What then? Well, we get a movie like Power Ballad - an earnest, well-intentioned, but rather passive comedy/drama about a pop star, desperate for a hit, who steals an older songwriter’s track, takes it to number one, and resurrects his boy band career as a solo artist.

It’s a solid premise, made all the more interesting by Paul Rudd’s performance as Rick Power, a 50-something rocker who has relocated to Ireland and performs in the Irish wedding cover band The Bride and The Groove. A former rock and roll front man who saw the music industry leave him behind, Power has settled into his local celebrity status, but still dreams of what might have been.

Danny Wilson (Nick Jonas) was a boy band megastar who hasn’t had a hit since the group went their separate ways. With pressure from management and his record label, a chance encounter at a wedding reception brings Danny and Rick together on stage. Later, Danny and Rick stay up all night and bond - drinking, smoking, playing music, and writing songs. Rick plays something he’s held personal and close to the vest; a ballad called “How To Write A Song Without You.” 

Months later, Rick hears the track at the mall. When his claims to being the songwriter are met with indifference and even disbelief from his bandmates, and wife Rachel (Marcella Plunkett) and teenage daughter Aja (Beth Fallon), Rick sets out to find Danny in Los Angeles in the hopes of settling their disagreement.

Power Ballad is charming at times, but is ultimately very slight. The premise is one of the weaker in Carney’s filmography and there is little surprise or intrigue in how all of this will turn out. Once we establish Danny’s success, the film spirals into incessant bickering, offering a storyline Rudd and Jonas can only take so far.

Still, Carney makes films that are really hard to dislike. There is a beauty in how he consistently reminds us that expression and vulnerability are part of the human experience. Whether you are a teenager forming a band to impress a high school crush or a down-on-his-luck busker looking for connection, we all can understand how Carney’s main characters work through a sense of loneliness and isolation in their pursuit of artistic fulfillment. No one quite makes movies like John Carney and I always am enthusiastic to find a new film of his to dive into.

The song at the center of Power Ballad, co-written by Carney and collaborator Gary Clark (who, in a fun fact, was the frontman for the 1980s band named Danny Wilson), offers a catchy chorus but little else. The song never feels like that larger-than-life #1 smash it is made out to be. Instead, it feels like the kind of retirement tour adult contemporary balladry artists like Goo Goo Dolls, Rob Thomas, and OneRepublic make nowadays; not something a 27-year-old teen icon uses to bounce back in his career.

Rudd carries the film, showcasing some impressive vocal chops, and elevating the material where appropriate. Jonas struggles with some of the more dramatic elements to his character, but fits the pop star role just fine. Rudd’s bandmates offer some comic relief and a nice moment comes near the end where Rick’s daughter truly sees a different side to her father.

That said, it is hard not to wish this was all a little deeper and more meaningful, and overall just a richer and rewarding film. I enjoyed Power Ballad, but will I ever revisit it? I don’t think so. 

Instead, I will revisit that music store in Once where two people connect over a love song. I’ll watch Keira Knightley leave a concert hall in Begin Again as her ex-boyfriend performs her song to a rapturous ovation. Or see a band find their collective voice on stage at a Senior Prom in Sing Street. 

Power Ballad was screened as part of the 52nd Seattle International Film Festival.