Young@Heart (2008)
Average Rating: 7.6/10
Reviews Counted: 100
Fresh: 88 | Rotten: 12
Full of endearing characters, this doc about a choir of "seniors behaving badly" is uplifting and delightful.
Average Rating: 7.5/10
Critic Reviews: 27
Fresh: 24 | Rotten: 3
Full of endearing characters, this doc about a choir of "seniors behaving badly" is uplifting and delightful.
liked it
Average Rating: 4.2/5
User Ratings: 5,171
My Rating
Movie Info
The Young@Heart Chorus is a vocal group from Northampton, MA, who have earned an international reputation for their unique interpretations of songs by Sonic Youth, the Ramones, and the Clash. However, this isn't a teenage garage band attacking the classic punk rock songbook -- the Young@Heart Chorus is comprised of 22 senior citizens whose average age is 80, and under director Bob Cilman they've gained a degree of fame for their enthusiastic a cappella renditions of well-known rock & roll tunes.
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Cast
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Joe Benoit
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Helen Boston
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Louise Canady
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Bob Cilman
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Elaine Fligman
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Jean Florio
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Len Fontaine
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Stan Goldman
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Eileen Hall
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Jeanne Hatch
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Donald Jones
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Fred Knittle
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Norma Landry
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
John Larareo
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Miriam Leader
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Patsy Linderme
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Brock Lynch
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Steve Martin
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Joe Mitchell
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Dora B. Morrow
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Gloria Parker
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Liria Petrides
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Ed Rehor
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Bob Salvini
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Jack Schnepp
Himself - Young@Heart C... -
Janice St. Laurence
Herself - Young@Heart C... -
Stephen Walker
Narrator -
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Young@Heart Trailer & Photos
All Critics (101) | Top Critics (27) | Fresh (88) | Rotten (12) | DVD (1)
Sure, these 'zesty', 'lively' old folks are enjoying themselves. The question is why on earth we should be expected to watch.
Top CriticA more genuinely sweet and uplifting documentary I have not seen in quite a while.
Young@Heart is nothing less than an ode to joy.
An undeniably sweet mix of disarming honesty, inspired gumption and brutal reality, Young@Heart somehow manages to avoid the maudlin while enhancing the obvious with its portrait of a chorus of senior citizens who sing contemporary rock songs.
What makes Young@Heart such an ingratiating experience goes far deeper than the novelty of seeing old people singing hard rock tunes.
In many ways, this serious side of Young@Heart is what ultimately makes the film memorable.
Ya gotta love these guys! How could you NOT love these guys?
This film shows the triumph of the human spirit and the strength of will.
Despite the director's smarmy narration and interviews, the bemused equanimity of these folks who've seen it all could inspire each of us to what "we can can" do as we age.
If it...verges on being just slightly patronising at times, that's a quarrel with the filmmakers, not its participants.
It's a pity that director Stephen Walker, who also narrates, imposes so much of himself on the material, asking at times the most insensitive questions.
Develops into a poignant reflection on community, mortality and how we all need to stop and smell the roses. Recommended.
Funny, touching and life-affirming.
As an interviewer Walker is habitually condescending and sometimes downright inane...
The wonderful members of the choir, truly young at heart, overcome the occasional clumsiness of the filmmaker and you come away from this film feeling genuinely uplifted.
The devil may have all the best tunes, but it's the elderly who nail them. Charming, heartwarming and totally kick-ass, you'll never look at your grandparents in the same way.
Moments of high comedy and deep tragedy make this more than the average rehearsal and concert film.
That might be because the film has already been shown on the BBC - a fact that, along with the unprepossessing production values, rather begs the question of why bother with a cinematic release at all?
A lovely little film.
Judicious trimming would have improved the movie, but Johnny Cash-voiced Fred Knittle's opening night rendition of Coldplay's "Fix You", dedicated to the recently departed members, is guaranteed to leave not a dry eye in the house.
If this film were any more heartwarming, your chest would melt.
A worse film might be dismissed as sobsploitation. But Stephen Walker's documentary - a labour of love inspired by Walker's first sight of the group in a London West End show - touches the mind as well as the heart.
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Foreign Titles
- Young@Heart (DE)
- Young@Heart (UK)
