The Greatest Hits – Movie Reviews by Ry!

The Greatest Hits – A Crossroads of Heart and Remembrance

Through the art of the story, what grips becomes the eye of perception.  Within one’s escape, we endure certainty through convictions of past and present ideas.  What is that makes you … feel?  Within any form of storytelling, the escape is an indelible thing.  With film, if it can provide true emotional overtures, then the experience is worth it.  In this review, I look at the latest indie/romance film.  Within a twist of predictability, we head into a tale of another kind.  For all the familiar aspects of the genre, The Greatest Hits is an honest appeal of love in the heart of music.

When a young woman finds herself trapped between memories and moving on, she must rediscover what it means to find real love beyond the music.  Within the romance genre, there are many cliches that bound the ongoing journey.  From characters to story, there are two predictable lanes that define the romantic experience: everlasting love or the tough road of moving on.  In either circumstance, what will make or break the story are the characters.  With this film, we come into the world through Harriet (Lucy Boynton), a young woman who has struggled to move on from the passing of her boyfriend, Max (David Corenswet).  Her struggles are only heightened by a unique gift.  When Harriet hears specific songs, she is transported back in time to relive precious moments with Max.  This gift (MacGuffin) becomes the crux of her tale, causing certain conflicts within her personal and public life.  Once this foundation is set, the filmmakers move through a linear perspective of characterization within her unique abilities.  Through interactions at a support group and her best friend, Morris (Austin Crute), we witness her struggles, a wonderment that builds on the themes of love, grief, and perseverance.  After a series of conversational moments, she begins a new relationship with a member from the support group, David (Justin Min).  This new dynamic creates an internal conflict for Harriet, beginning an intuitive dynamic between the possibilities with David and her unpredictable transport to those precious memories (with Max).  From here, the journey slowly molds the foundational aspect within familiar tropes, creating an odd look through the standing crossroads of moving on.  With that added layer of music, it provides depth to the escape, providing a new twist of emotional overtures within the idea of true romance.

As her relationship grows with David, Harriet begins to have feelings of uncertainty about her past.  She begins to question the importance of those odd trips back to certain moments (with Max), leading to conflict within the heart of remembrance.  With each new moment providing a reflection of cause, Harriet builds towards an inevitability for the present.  With a harden choice at hand, we head into a third act that brings about the idea of ‘moving on’ to a twisting climax and hopeful epilogue.  The Greatest Hits is a romance film that provides a twist to the genre.  If you are a fan of romantic films, grounded or wholesome tales, this is one for you.  This is available to stream on Hulu but would have been fun to see on the big screen.

Full Score – 3 out of 5 (Theater Discount)