Power Ballad

At first viewing of Power Ballad, I didn’t think it was as good as everyone was making it out to be. However upon rewatching it, I was able to catch some details in the film that I didn’t see before and my opinion changed. It’s not the best film, but it is one that should be seen with an audience rather than by yourself.

The music is really the star in this film. Everyone song flowed with the film, especially How to Write a Song without you. The score and performances were able to take the covers/original songs and transform them into something that younger and older generations can relate to. While the cover songs (e.g. Celebration, I Wish, and Summer of 69’) are songs that parents/grandparents can jam out to, the original songs (e.g. How to Write a Song without you, Class of 1984, and Satellite) can connect with the younger generation. My favorite song, while the main song is a great song to listen to, Class of 1984, however is a song that really connected the most to me. I wish this song had more spotlight because it tackles the themes of enjoying life and living outside of technology and isolation. In today’s world, this song is relevant to how people connect with others, which unfortunately is through screens instead of going out and actually meeting people face to face. Nick Jonas is able to use these themes and have the song be catchy enough to enjoy while also adding a layer of truth to how our world works today.

While the movie shines through the music, I personally love the lighting in how they viewed the two separate worlds of the main characters. The colors in Ireland are muted but are natural to show the reality of what Rick goes through everyday. In Danny’s world, while L.A. has the brighter light, there’s something plastic looking about the city. It was an interesting take on Hollywood and I respect Carney if that was what he was going for. Rick summed up Hollywood perfectly by saying “I’ve always wondered what these lights looked like and the more I look at them, the more fake they really are.” (Rudd, 2026). Hollywood, on the outside can be a wonderful place to live, but then as you get closer, there’s only plastic living styles and unrealistic expectations. I love this detail Carney had in this line and was able to see from both perspectives of both men’s lives and the pressure Danny was under in order to keep up the act of being back on top. In the climax of the fight, Danny, for the first time is able to come to realization that he’s not the artist that he’s been telling everyone he is. For a brief moment, he is able to be vulnerable with Rick and Rick, despite his anger he had, doesn’t fight him and allows him to continue. It show compassion, even in the heat of the moment is beautiful to see. Not often do we see a lot of compassion when two sides are against one another (minus Marvel and Pixar/Disney) and have them try to understand each other and I personally loved that brief moment until Mac came along with security and took away from a character developing moment.

The acting performances of Nick and Paul really shone through this movie. I was more invested in Rick’s journey in being hidden with his song and how overtime not getting the credit he deserved burnt him from doing something he loves the most: making music. It’s common for someone who gets overlooked can be burnt out over the course, however it was sad to see his love die and eventually spiral out to the point where it affects his work and family. While I hated how he didn’t come prepared with proof at first, we do see the people he loves the most have faith in him even if they don’t condone how he goes about it. The desperation he has and the lost of faith we see is horrible but in the end, when he gets some resolution in Danny being honest with him, it shows growth and how he knows the reason he wrote the song can never be taken away is nice to see. Carney and Rudd were able to convey that we won’t always get the answers we’re looking for and that songs don’t need to have one meaning, that music can mean a lot of significant moments in people’s lives. While Rick doesn’t understand that at first, he no longer needs a crowd to feel fulfilled, the music is what matters and I love that message and Rudd did a great job of letting Rick’s journey be realistic. And having the inspiration of Rick’s song, Aja find evidence was definitely a full circle moment and I gasped in that moment.

One aspect of the film I didn’t like was the relationship of Marcia and Danny. While first glance, it looks like Marcia is going to be the rock that steadies Danny, even encouraging him to release How to Write a Song without you (not knowing the context of the song). In the second act of the movie, they break up. The relationship seemed authentic and Danny even mentions to Rick of how much he loves her, so for them to break up, it didn’t felt right. I get the “career” angle, but at the end of the day I wish we got more closure in how there relationship turned over the course of the six months since the song was released. There could’ve been a moment where Danny talks about her but they left it for a few brief shots of how the relationship went awry and that didn’t sit right with me.

Finally, I love Sandy as he is a ride or die. Yes, he made mistakes but was loyal to Rick since the beginning and I personally love the friendship they had. While he was loyal, he did have limits and didn’t forgive Rick for snapping at him right away. Instead, he waited for him to apologize and actually thought about whether or not he wanted to continue the friendship. You don’t see friends in movies actually think about whether they want to continue friendship where it might lead them wrong down the road and for that moment it was nice to see the side characters have some boundaries guarded for them and while, Rick was a good guy, Sandy needed that confirmation to make sure he was worth it.

Overall, this is a movie I recommend seeing with friends and family rather than alone as you will have a great time watching this film and feel good in the end. However, since it’s R rated I wouldn’t watch this film with children.