Flora and Son

"Since Carney’s films now have a distinct signature, 'Flora and Son' won’t land with the same sense of originality that Once did. But this engaging film takes full advantage of its stylistic DNA" 

"John Carney delivers another cozy, crowd-pleasing Irish musical" 

"A rollicking ode to working-class defiance. But there is a fine line between leaving some stories tantalizingly open-ended and stumbling through all of them in a hurry. By the time it gets to the final scene, it has jumped the wrong way over that line" 

"Carney has this genre on lock. No other working filmmaker has consistently captured what he's able to with his movies, zeroing in on the way music can bridge emotional distances (...) Rating: ★★★★★★★★ (out of 10)" 

"With a lovingly crude sense of humor and finding the perfect star in Hewson to radiate sincere liveliness every moment she’s onscreen, Carney has crafted a winning tale of motherhood and music" 

"As a modest comedy, however, it has charm and appeal, but just not enough substance to blow up at the box office" 

"[It] is far more invested in making its characters likable and cute rather than risking audience sympathies (...) Rating: ★½ (out of 4)"