A former world-famous conductor of the Bolshoï orchestra, known as "The Maëstro", Andreï Filipov had seen his career publicly broken by Leonid Brezhnev for hiring Jewish musicians and now works cleaning the concert hall where he once directed. One day, he intercepts an official invitation from the prestigious Théâtre du Châtelet. Through a series of mad antics, he reunites his old orchestra, now composed of old alcoholic musicians, and flies to perform in Paris and complete the Tchaikovsky concerto interrupted 30 years earlier. For the concerto, he engages a young violin soloist with whom he has an unexpected connection.
It ends in a place of transcendent emotion that sends everyone out of the theater in a swirl of transport.
– Mick LaSalle,
San Francisco Chronicle,
6 Aug 2010
rotten:
The Concert was so unfunny, I had to consult IMDB.com to make sure that it was indeed listed as a comedy.
– Rachel Saslow,
Washington Post,
6 Aug 2010
rotten:
Benefits from clever editing and a credible cinematic representation of the ineffable power of music to ignite the human spirit. Sadly, the magic is way too long in the making.
– Greg Quill,
Toronto Star,
8 Oct 2010
fresh:
"The Concert" is manipulative, overly sentimental, sometimes ludicrous and almost completely irresistible.
– Bill Goodykoontz,
Arizona Republic,
24 Mar 2011
fresh:
"The Concert" builds beautifully from a farcical premise that requires a suspension of disbelief to a musical climax that washes away our cynicism in a wave of honest tears.