John Carney is a very specific filmmaker. Without knowing a premise to a new John Carney film, you can almost predict what it’s going to be about. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it just goes to show the filmmaker has carved out a very specific niche. He makes feel-good dramas that utilize music and are almost always crowd-pleasers. And with that definition in mind, “Flora and Son” is very much a John Carney film.
As seen in the trailer for the film, “Flora and Son” tells the story about a single mom and her rebellious teen son. To help reform his teen angst, the mother gives him an acoustic guitar, and with the help of a washed-up musician, the mother and son reconnect through the power of music.
The film stars Eve Hewson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Jack Reynor, and Orén Kinlan. “Flora and Son” is written and directed by John Carney. The filmmaker is probably best known for his previous musicals, “Sing Street” and “Once.”
We saw “Flora and Son” at this year’s Sundance, and in our review, we said, “It’s all very charming, and when these disparate souls start making music together – Flora offers up suggestions for one of Jack’s songs and helps Max make a video for the song he wrote for his crush – we get that very specific kind of goosebump that Carney can so expertly conjure up, the magic moment when these lost people finally find peace and/or love and/or truth, if only for the three-minute increments of a pop song.”
“Flora and Son” debuts in select theaters on September 22 before hitting Apple TV+ on September 29. You can watch the trailer below.
Here’s the synopsis:
Single mom Flora (Eve Hewson) is at a loss about what to do with her rebellious teenage son, Max (Orén Kinlan). Encouraged by the police to find Max a hobby, Flora tries to occupy him with a beat-up acoustic guitar. With the help of a washed-up LA musician (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), Flora and Max discover the transformative power of music. From the musical mind of John Carney, “Flora and Son” explores the bond between a mother and son on a journey toward a new harmony.
