A generic story of triumph as unengaging as it is unbelievable in its details.
Music of the Heart (1999)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:75
Fresh:51
Rotten:24
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: Meryl Streep's depiction of an ordinary person doing extraordinary things transcends, inspires, and entertains.
Runtime: 2 hrs 4 mins
Genre: Dramas
Synopsis: After her husband leaves her, Roberta Guaspari (Streep) struggles to find a job. When she bumps into an old friend (Quinn), he tells her of a high school that could is without a music teacher. She... After her husband leaves her, Roberta Guaspari (Streep) struggles to find a job. When she bumps into an old friend (Quinn), he tells her of a high school that could is without a music teacher. She meets with the school's principal (Bassett) and states her desire to teach the children the violin. The principal rejects her, citing lack of funding as one of the many excuses why it could never happen. Persistently, she eventually breaks her down and fights to establish a solid, effective program. Ten years later, the program has spread to other schools and is a smashing success. When funds are once again cut and the program is threatened for real, Roberta uses connections to get the injustice printed in the New York Times. A benefit concert ensues at Carnegie Hall, featuring appearances of such luminaries as Itzhak Perlman, Isaac Stern, and Arnold Steinhardt. [More]
Starring: Meryl Streep, Aidan Quinn, Gloria Estefan, Angela Bassett
Starring: Meryl Streep, Aidan Quinn, Gloria Estefan, Angela Bassett, Cloris Leachman, Josh Pais, Jay O. Sanders, Charlie Hofheimer, Kieran Culkin, Jane Leeves
Director: Wes Craven
Director: Wes Craven
Screenwriter: Pamela Gray
Producer: Marianne Maddalena, Alan Miller, Walter Scheuer
Composer: Mason Daring
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Release:
Jul 1, 2003
Reviews for Music of the Heart
Some movies you want to see. Some movies you need to see. Music Of The Heart is one of the latter.
Makes a good case for its message, about the value of music education and the eternal precariousness of its funding.
Craven sends the audience out feeling happy and inspired--which is the very reason why one would buy a ticket.
Some people will warm to Music of the Heart, and for those people the idea of criticizing the film will be like kicking a puppy.
There really is a Roberta Guaspari, but this dull, wanly repetitive teacher movie fails to bring her story to life.
An inspirational, pleasantly diverting but markedly familiar family movie.
Music of the Heart doesn't take you anywhere you haven't been before, but it's still an enjoyable ride.
This is really a showcase for Streep, who makes the well-trodden formula sing anew.
Most movies claiming to be based on fact pour on the melodrama, but this one basically just sticks to the real story, which has all the emotional wallop that's needed.
an inspirational story that finds its harmonies not without their share of dissonant notes.
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