---
title: "Hear My Song: the reviews"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/hear-my-song/reviews"
title_page: "https://film.one/film/hear-my-song"
critics_score: 73
critics_reviews: 7
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Hear My Song (1991): what the critics said

Critics' score 73 from 7 reviews: 5 positive, 1 mixed, 1 negative.

Most critics respond warmly to Hear My Song, with praise clustering around Peter Chelsom’s light touch, the romantic comedy’s sense of community and Adrian Dunbar’s impudent charm. The favourable reviews find that its Irish whimsy, broad humour and bittersweet romance work well together, making the search for singer Josef Locke worth caring about. They also credit Chelsom with handling sentiment confidently, though even some admirers suggest that a taste for fanciful comedy is a condition of enjoying it.

The disagreement is chiefly over how much charm and sentiment the film can sustain, and the range of opinion is wide despite the favourable majority. Variety finds the later stretches excessive, while still praising Dunbar’s lead performance. Time Out is the clear dissenter, regarding the same warmth as ingratiating and the tone as maudlin, though it makes an exception for Beatty’s performance.

## Los Angeles Times — Kevin Thomas

Rating 4/4. 27 December 1991. 

An unalloyed joy that recalls the great Ealing classics of the ’50s and a four-star gem. Feature debut writer-director Peter Chelsom has a warmth and wit that could cheer up just about anybody.

[Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1991-12-27-ca-874-story.html)

## Empire — Angie Errigo

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. 

The critic finds the film fanciful, fresh and charmingly funny, recommending it to those who enjoy whimsy while warning off those allergic to it. She singles out the true story inspiration of the Josef Locke impersonator and Chelsom's light touch in steering the sentimental climax.

[Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/hear-song-review/)

## Radio Times — David Parkinson

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 

This is a delicious confection with the right amounts of Irish whimsy, scouse nous, bittersweet romance and broad comedy. Adrian Dunbar is the personification of impudent charm.

[Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-uotack/hear-my-song/)

## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert

Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 14 February 1992. 

The film builds a romantic comedy of great charm around a real-life Irish tenor in tax exile. It is a labor of love and wit that creates a tight-knit community and makes viewers care about the search for the singer.

[Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/hear-my-song-1992)

## The New York Times — Janet Maslin

Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 19 January 1992. 

This winning first feature has the kind of blithe, fanciful magic that can't be achieved through skill alone. It is the shaggy-dog story of a nightclub owner's search for the real Josef Locke.

[Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/1992/01/19/movies/review-film-irish-tenor-is-focus-of-intrigue-and-blarney.html)

## Variety — Variety Staff

Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 31 December 1991. 

An unabashedly romantic fantasy about a concert promoter that goes straight for the heart. By the final reels it becomes too much, but Dunbar carries off the lead role in winning fashion.

[Read the review](https://variety.com/1991/film/reviews/hear-my-song-1200429396/)

## Time Out — GA

Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 10 September 2012. 

Chelsom's first feature is an old-fashioned comedy whose shameless stabs at cockle-warming charm make for a sludge of ingratiating whimsy. Despite Beatty's sterling performance, the overall tone is one of maudlin blarney.

[Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/hear-my-song)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/hear-my-song.md