The Greatest Hits, 2024.
Written and Directed by Ned Benson.
Starring Lucy Boynton, Justin H. Min, David Corenswet, Austin Crute, Retta, Rory Keane, Jackson Kelly, Andie Ju, Tom Yi, Evan Shafran, Thomas Ochoa, Jenne Kang, and Mary Eileen O’Donnell.
SYNOPSIS:
A love story centering on the connection between music and memory and how they transport us, sometimes literally.
It is a shame writer/director Ned Benson’s The Greatest Hits quickly becomes the worst version of itself because the hook of music literally transforming someone into the past via time travel to remote a key memory associated with that song is certainly one of the more refreshing recent riffs on the sci-fi concept. However, rather than using this tantalizing plot device to examine a range of emotions and scenarios, here, the focus is on Lucy Boynton’s Harriet, still grieving the loss of her musician partner Max (David Corenswet) to a fatal car accident where she was the sole survivor.
The tragic event also left Harriet with a condition in which songs now take her back in time to relive the past. Apparently, all that has mattered to her in her entire life is this relationship. Every song brings her back to their dynamic to the point where the film is offputtingly obsessed with the relationship and not Harriet as an actual character. That’s not enough; the screenplay decides that the direction for this sentimental slop to go is a love triangle, with Harriet forced to choose between reliving her relationship with Max (by now, she has figured out which song to bring her back to specific moments, such as the day they met) and moving forward with a potential new flame, Justin H. Min’s David.
Meeting at a group therapy session for grief, Harriet and David strike up a friendship as she explains that she is looking for a certain record. She thinks that if she finds this song, it will bring her back to the moment right before the car accident so that she can alter fate and change the present. Naturally, Harriet doesn’t actually tell David this, aware that it’s all crazy. Oh, what I would have given to be a fly on the wall during that official medical diagnosis…
There is someone who does believe Harriet, and that would be her gay Black DJ best friend Morris (Austin Crute), a trope so embarrassing at this point that it’s actually kind of ballsy to put it in the movie, knowing that righteous backlash is inevitable. Anyway, Morris doesn’t necessarily do much beyond pointing out that Harriet is somewhat mentally ill and needs to overcome this emotional pain, especially since she seems to have a second shot at true love. However, none of the relationships here are necessarily convincing or contain heated chemistry.
Using this time travel concept to analyze grief is fine, but both sides of the romance here are surface-level dates giving off a dreamy, idyllic vibe rather than actually creating characters. The Greatest Hits doesn’t have characters; it has, coincidently, the greatest hits of eye-rolling tropes and contrivances. It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise to say that some of this ends up being intertwined into a grander picture, but the level to which it is might prove to be nauseating for even the most ardent romantic comedy enthusiasts. There is some striking visual flare and a genius idea tapping into humanity’s relationship with music and memories, all wasted on cringe love triangle melodrama.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★
Robert Kojder is a member of the Chicago Film Critics Association and the Critics Choice Association. He is also the Flickering Myth Reviews Editor. Check here for new reviews, follow my Twitter or Letterboxd, or email me at MetalGearSolid719@gmail.com
