Danny Collins

I really enjoyed Danny Collins. Starring Al Pacino, it's about a cheesy older performer, sort of like Neil Diamond (who I like, by the way), who receives a letter written to him 40 years before by John Lennon encouraging his song writing. This spirals him into a crisis about finding himself creatively, and also involves trying to connect with the grown son who he has never met.

It's kind of silly throughout. The grown son wants nothing to do with him at first, and his pouty stubbornness seems a little bit of a cliche, not about character but simply a plot device. In Danny's crisis he moves into a generic hotel (a Hilton I think) and develops a really fun flirtation with the manager, played by my favorite, Annette Bening. I enjoyed this "patter" quite a bit.

Even though Danny Collins is kind of cliche and fluffy, I was very entertained throughout and thoroughly invested in it. I even cried a bit at the end.