Film Review: American Harmony

Title:               American Harmony
Director:              Aengus James
Producer:            Gary DePew, Russ Squires (Exec), Colin King Miller,
                                 Aengus James, Grant Kahler, Tim Tracy (Co)
Screenwriter:    Aengus James
Cinema:               Aengus James
Editor:                  Kate Amend, Grant Kahler
Music:                   Adam Sanborne
Year:                     2008 (98 minutes)

Synopsis: Every year thousands compete in the world’s greatest competition – that you’ve never heard of. American Harmony journeys deep into the obsessive, zany, heartfelt world of competitive barbershop singing, where passion is equaled only by talent, and the reward is not fame or fortune, but simply victory. The film focuses on four quartets vying to win the International Championships of Barbershop Singing, in what turns out to be the closest and most controversial victory in its 70 year history. Max Q is the heavy favorite – a superstar quartet comprised of former Champions. Looking to upset them is OCTimes (The Heart-Throbs), Vocal Spectrum (The Rookies) and Reveille, an aging foursome that has been together for 30 years.

Review: Who ever thought that a competition among barbershop quartets could be so intense? Who ever thought a documentary about a competition among barbershop quartets could be so interesting? If you would have asked me before I saw American Harmony, I sure wouldn’t have raised my hand. But now that I’ve seen it, my hand is raised high.

As I’ve said in the past, I have a real soft spot for competition documentaries. They have to draw you in and make you care about the competition and the competitors. But if they do that, they can be great. Director Aengus James does that with American Harmony.

I was really surprised by the level of musicianship exhibited by all of the competitors. The International Championship of Barbershop Singing is a very high level event. Only the best of the best make it to the championship. Even so, there are a handful of quartets that stand above the rest. These are truly the absolute best in the world and it is amazing to watch and hear them compete.

I was also surprised by the huge personalities involved in barbershop singing. Tony DeRosa of Max Q doesn’t look the part, but he has the most awesome voice you can imagine and people love to hear him sing. The bass in Max Q, Jeff Oxley has a huge voice and an ego to match. His big personality and movie-star good looks make him a target of both adoration and disdain in the barbershop signing world. Even the event announcer, “Awesome” Joe Connelly, a former competitor, has a bigger than life personality.

Although I really did enjoy American Harmony, I would be remiss if I did not mention something about the film that bothered me. One quartet, Reveille, was clearly outclassed in the championship, but their story was included in the film because one of their members was dying of cancer. It was a heart-wrenching story, but seemed out of place in the film. It felt forced, like the director just couldn’t resist including the story for emotion’s sake. It was the one glaring misstep in an otherwise well done film.

(4.0 out of 5.0)