Member of the Club
Screened Monday, October 13, 2008
Synopsis
After starring in the indie hit Once in 2007 and winning the Oscar for best original song, folk rock musicians Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova won over audiences and skyrocketed to fame. For them, life seemed to imitate art—the onscreen relationship was closely intertwined in both fact and fiction. But when they got back to reality, Hansard, 35, and Irglova, only 18 years old, decided to ride the wave of newfound popularity by heading on tour.
This subtle and mesmerizing black-and-white music documentary bears witness to the band and the couple, from musical numbers that pleasure the ears and vibrate the screen to quiet moments where body language and silent pauses linger with foreboding heartbreak. It has always been apparent that the modest duo has a special connection musically, but when the offstage relationship doesn’t run as smoothly, it raises real questions about the future.
