Paul Rudd's everyman affability is turned up to 11 in the latest music-based crowd-pleaser from Once and Sing Street director John Carney, the story of what happens when the frontman of 'Ireland's best wedding band' meets an A-list singer with writer's block one fateful night.
Rick Power (Rudd) has been living in Dublin for 15 years after falling for Irish woman Rachel (Marcella Plunkett) on tour. He's a dad to teenage daughter Aja (newcomer Beth Fallon) and seemingly content with his lot, realising that Crumlin and a steady gig with The Bride and Groove have more to offer than the hamster wheel of the music business back in the US.
While entertaining the guests with covers galore at a seriously swanky afters, Rick is told that former boyband star Danny Wilson (Nick Jonas) wants to join him on stage for a song. The room goes wild, and Danny, selflessly, shares the mic with Rick. Their chemistry as performers is undeniable.
So when Danny invites Rick to spend the small hours jamming, the ideas tumble out of them as one shows the other all the stuff they've been working on, admitting that despite their wildly different circumstances, they're both after the same thing: something more profound than a paycheque.
Fast forward six months, and Rick's amble through Dundrum Town Centre is interrupted by Danny's new track. It's a beautiful ballad. It's also one of the songs that Rick showed Danny...
Familiar Carney themes of staying true to oneself, friendship, and the magic right in front of us are all punched on Power Ballad's emotional jukebox, and, once again, it's hard to resist. Co-written with actor Peter McDonald (here cast as Rudd/Rick's wrecking-ball bandmate Sandy), this comedy-drama offers more of the latter but never gets too heavy for too long as our hero scrambles to prove he's been done out of a fortune and, more importantly, the acknowledgement from family, friends, and beyond that he has what it takes as a songwriter. The only disappointment is that Power Ballad should've given Jonas bigger scenes on the other side of the pond as the nice-guy nemesis who appears to have everything but doesn't have much of what matters when all is said and done.
If there's a better fist-pumping finale this year, crowds will be spoiled rotten - and Crowley and co leave you wanting more.
