This movie is about aging and about finding a reason to live. An aging rock star, Danny Collins, who is still popular, receives a letter from a famous rock star, forty years after the letter was written. The letter contains advice that if followed, may have changed Danny's life for the better. Basically, the letter's message was that you don't have to let material things erode your creativity. The problem for Danny is that after forty years of performing, he now finds himself wallowing in that creative and spiritual rut that the letter warned him about. He hasn't written a new song in thirty years and the material he does perform over and over again is stale to the point of being toxic. None of his props - his huge house, expensive car, young fiancé, the alcohol, the drugs - help inspire him. He feels an emptiness that is nagging him. After reading the letter, Danny decides to retire. He does this in order to try to revive his creativity and prove to himself that he can still produce. The rest of the movie reveals more about Danny's character, showing that under all the the boozing and drugging there exists a decent person. To find out whether Danny finds happiness and fulfillment, watch the movie. Al Pacino gives a strong, yet appropriately nuanced performance as an aging man who is searching for meaning in his life. After decades of using music as much as an escape as well as a source of income, he finally begins to confront the truth about himself. What he discovers makes this movie worth watching.
