The Greatest Hits Movie Review (2024)

Sometimes you get a movie that stars people you like and looks like something entertaining, but it never quite clicks. It’s fair to say that The Greatest Hits never quite lived up to its name.

Every once in a while, there’s a movie that looks like it’s going to be fun. I don’t read much about any film, but I’ll look at the movie poster, notice any actors on it, and get a general vibe for what it might be. I go into it wanting to like it, but it doesn’t always work out that way.

The Greatest Hits is a movie about Harriet, a young adult who has lost her boyfriend in a tragic accident. Wearing headphones everywhere so that she can keep out errant music, she has discovered that when she listens to specific songs, she can be whisked back in time to try to alter the past and keep her boyfriend alive. Having changed nothing yet, she is hunting for a specific song that will do the trick. While going through the paces of her past, she meets David at a grief support group and they develop a bond.

This drama stars Lucy Boynton (who I loved as Mary in Bohemian Rhapsody), Justin H. Min as David (fantastic as Yang in After Yang), David Corenswet (who will star in the new Superman movie), and Austin Crute as Harriet’s best friend (from Booksmart). I don’t know Mr. Crute from very much, but he was the best part of this film, lighting up the screen in all of his scenes. I would love a spinoff of his life.

I had a strange experience watching this movie, though. I really like the main two stars of the film (Lucy Boynton and Justin H. Min). I enjoy watching them both on screen and the only reason that I had any enjoyment in this experience at all was because of the two of them and Harriet’s best friend. But at the same time, the entire time, I felt like these two actors in particular were the wrong movie.

There is no depth to The Greatest Hits. You know that Harriet is in pain and looking for her song. She takes it all incredibly seriously (and you’re supposed to as well because she’s trying to stop a death from happening), but I mostly found myself wanting to want to care about her, David, her deceased boyfriend, and her quest. I never got to a space of actually caring or taking any of it very seriously.

It got to the point where I started finding the dialogue and storyline fairly hokey. There is a scene in which Harriet and David both start crying. It was not supposed to be funny, but it felt like these two fantastic actors were not supposed to be there. It was cringey and didn’t work for me, but if it had been in any other serious movie, during any other serious moment, I probably would have been touched. I cry easily and this sent me off in exactly the opposite direction.

There is nothing specifically wrong with The Greatest Hits and maybe some of you will find a depth that I never found. But if you are like me and want a bit of history about the characters or some reason to want her to have her boyfriend back other than Harriet’s tortured pain, I’d pass. There are far better love stories out there (see Dinner In America and Pride & Prejudice).

Runtime: 94 minutes

Motion Picture Rating: PG-13

Languages Spoken In The Film: English

Should You Watch It? Eh, probably not

Did I Cry? Nope

My Rating: 2/5 Stars

Available: On Hulu or may be available for free on other streaming platforms