What the film's director William Brent Bell and writer Stacey Menear do get right, however, is Brahms's ability to endear himself to those around him.

Quoth the other, more bewhiskered and musically inclined Brahms, "The only true immortality lies in one's children." Oh, Johannes, if only you knew.

It's a grim sign that this clunky title turns out to be the most distinctive, memorable element of the film.

Brahms: The Boy II is a sincerely boring movie that does everything technically correct on paper. Casting, acting, pacing, direction – it’s all passable. The end result is boring as sin, though.