Film

I Used to Be Famous

Name: I Used to Be Famous
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Music
Released: 2022
Cast: Ed Skrein, Eleanor Matsuura, Eoin Macken, Kurt Egyiawan, Neil Stuke

Drama

A washed-up boy-band singer reconnects with music through an unlikely friendship with a brilliant young drummer. It's warm and funny, with genuine heart and real stakes about ambition, aging, and what matters when fame fades. For anyone who's ever felt left behind or wondered if second acts are possible.

TMDb rating

3.5

If you liked this

Begin Again2014

A failed record producer and struggling songwriter rebuild their lives and find hope through making music together. It captures the same tender, hopeful tone about artistic redemption and human connection.

But The romance subplot overshadows the music in ways that might feel conventional. Some find it sentimental.

Yesterday2019

A struggling musician gets a surreal second chance, asking what matters about success and whether your art is worth losing yourself. The same question of identity and music drives both films.

But The premise leans heavily on fantasy and contrivance. If you want realism, this takes things too far into whimsy.

Sing Street2016

A young musician finds confidence and connection through forming a band in 1980s Dublin. Joyful and character-driven, with the same faith in music as a bridge between people.

But It's sunnier in tone and more nostalgic. Lacks the age and disillusionment themes that give I Used to Be Famous its weight.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from I Used to Be Famous

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Harder They Come1972

Both examine the machinery of music industry ambition, but from opposite ends: one asks if you still want it; the other shows why you thought you did.

A Jamaican reggae musician chases stardom in Kingston, mixing documentary realism with narrative drama. The inverse of I Used to Be Famous: a hungry young artist willing to do anything for success, asking what fame costs.

But Older, rougher, shot in a neo-realist style. The pacing and technical craft feel dated. Contains violence that's not softened for comfort.

Once2007

Two musicians create something real together over a few Dublin days. Intimate, music-focused, and genuinely moving about art mattering more than fame or commercial success.

But Very spare and quiet. If you need plot momentum or emotional drama, this gentle approach might feel slow.

Fleabag2016

A person adrift reinvents themselves through charisma and connection, finding depth beneath the performance. The same exploration of who you are when the act falls away.

But It's comedy-first and anarchic. Very different in tone and energy from the grounded sincerity of I Used to Be Famous.

The Soloist2009

An unlikely friendship between a journalist and a homeless musician, grounded in real talent and mutual respect. Both films find depth in unconventional bonds and second chances.

But It's more earnest and heavy-handed about its themes of redemption and mentorship. Less funny, more well-meaning.

tick, tick... BOOM!2021

A young artist reckons with ambition and mortality through music, asking what success really means. Musical and deeply human, with genuine stakes about artistic legacy.

But Bursts into full song-and-dance numbers. If you want contemporary realism, the theatrical heightening might feel displaced.

Blinded by the Light2019

A young man finds himself through music and connection with an older mentor. Warm and sincere about how art saves us and brings people together across difference.

But Relies on Springsteen fandom as its backbone. If you're not moved by the music, the film loses its core emotional engine.

C'est la vie!2017

The thematic core: what does your art become when ambition fades and time runs short? How do you stay vital?

A documentary following six classical musicians in their seventies and eighties, still performing, still learning, still alive to their art. Real people grappling with age, purpose, and what music means when youth is gone.

But It's a documentary, not a narrative. Slow and observational, without plot or conventional drama. Requires patience and genuine interest in the lives themselves.