Review of Quartet (2012) by Russell G — 27 Apr 2013

This is a romantic comedy that is very light on the humor. It is slow uneventful, and uneven. For a movie about a music conservatory that is also a retirement home, the music plays a very small role. The love of music and opera should have been the spine of the movie, but somehow it just tiptoes around it.

Instead, the main focus is the romance side of the story, which continuously makes the movie drag. The best scene of the movie involves a retired opera master sharing his joy of opera to high schoolers by relating to them through hip-hop's similarities to opera.

This short-lived moment is the only part of the movie that seemed to hit the mark. It seems completely unlikely that the main character could be so bitter, considering the time that has past since his failed engagement.

If he still harbors a grudge against his former fiancé, the fact that he gets over it so abruptly is hard to take seriously. It is cute how their relationship is happy rebuilt, but there are "Leave It To Beaver" episodes with more emotion and conflict, before arriving to a resolution.

This is a dry brand of comedy that offers a chuckle or two, but the funny moments are too few and far between.