2024 Movie
Dir. Ned Benson · United States of America · English
Music prolongs grief in this fairly standard indie romance
Lovers share moments and memories intertwined with music, to the point that when the relationship ends, listening to an old track brings back the past. For Harriet in The Greatest Hits, this is literal, to the point that random music playing outside prolongs her grief. The story is familiar– it’s sort of similar to 2022’s Press Play– and frankly, the cinematography relies a bit too much on lens flares, but the cast makes the best of it, with Lucy Boynton having compelling chemistry with both Justin H. Min and David Corenswet. That being said, the film has a dated feel, with most of the tracks coming from the previous decade, and the conclusion it makes would feel totally insulting if they wrote Harriet’s relationship with Max in depth. But it’s still a fairly decent launching point for the cast and maybe a decent ad for silent disco spots and Spotify.
Harriet finds art imitating life when she discovers certain songs can transport her back in time – literally. While she relives the past through romantic memories of her former boyfriend, her time travelling collides with a burgeoning new love interest in the present. As she takes her journey through the hypnotic connection between music and memory, she wonders – even if she could change the past, should she?
"Benson, who also wrote the film’s screenplay, knows his way around heartbreak, and despite the elevated nature of the story... always finds room to add genuinely relatable elements to Harriet’s incredible plight."
— Kate Erbland
Two years after losing her boyfriend in a car accident, Harriet tries to avoid listening to music outside, since each song brings her back to the time when he was alive. However, secretly, she’s tried her hardest to undo his death. In the meantime, she goes to a grief support group and meets someone new.
The thing about films like this is that the music selection keeps the film feeling dated. To a certain extent, this can be used to make the relationship that Harriet was grieving upon feel like something to move on, and if this relationship spanned decades, it wouldn’t be a problem. But The Greatest Hits has a new romance to root for, yet all the tracks distinctly feel like it comes from the 2010s rather than something fresh to finally enjoy.
I wouldn’t say it has THE greatest hits, though.
Isabella Endrinal is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. She's now free from the corporate night shift. Previous articles have been published in outlets such as NANG Magazine. She's currently catching up on some classic films… if she isn't coping with the fact that the Haikyu anime will end soon.
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