Today’s quick review: Danny Collins. For four decades, Danny Collins (Al Pacino) has filled stadiums with fans eager to hear him sing the same set of songs. Wealthy beyond his wildest dreams and surrounded by supporters, Danny lets himself lapse into a life of drugs, decadence, and artistic torpor. But all that changes when Danny’s manager Frank (Christopher Plummer) gives him a long-lost letter from John Lennon urging Danny to stay true to his art.
Danny Collins is a dramatic comedy about an aging rockstar who attempts to shake off the shackles of commercial success, clean up his life, and rekindle his passion for music. Al Pacino stars as Danny, an amiable man whose hedonistic lifestyle has reached a dead end. Danny holes up in a New Jersey hotel where he writes new songs, flirts with the manager Mary (Annette Bening), and reconnects with his grown son Tom (Bobby Cannavale).
The backbone of Danny Collins is its characters. Al Pacino does a fantastic job as Danny, radiating a personal charisma that sells the role and endears him to the audience almost immediately. His performance is nearly equaled by the supporting cast. Frank, Mary, and Tom are vivid characters who are more than a match for Danny, keeping his ego in check and leading to both some entertaining banter and some surprisingly touching character moments.
Danny Collins does a good job of nurturing its characters and helping them on their way. The story dabbles in familiar patterns, retaining a broadly predictable structure without being trapped by it. The movie has a knack for finding interactions that bring out something deeper in the characters, whether it is Danny’s willingness to leave his old life behind or his son’s genuine hurt at being abandoned by his father.
The end result is a modestly scoped but deeply rewarding tale of personal redemption. Danny Collins does not match the dramatic heights of some movies nor the laugh-out-loud comedy of others. But thanks to the richness of its characters and the talents of its cast, Danny Collins carves out a niche for itself as a character-focused with plenty of light comedy and quite a lot of heart.
For Al Pacino in a similarly charismatic role with even more personal problems, try Two for the Money. For a sprawling romantic comedy that includes an aging rockstar trying to reclaim his former glory, try Love Actually.
[7.0 out of 10 on IMDB](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1772288/). I give it the same for excellent characters and a rewarding story.