Inspired by the true story of folk singer Steve Tilston,[5] the film stars Al Pacino, Annette Bening, Jennifer Garner, Bobby Cannavale and Christopher Plummer.

[6] Aging 1970s rocker Danny Collins cannot give up his hard-living ways, but his manager Frank Grubman uncovers a 40-year-old undelivered letter to him from John Lennon.

He travels to New Jersey to attempt to connect for the first time with his grown son, Tom Donnelly, born from a casual relationship with a woman who died 10 years earlier.

Tom initially rejects the father who he believes abandoned him, but Danny persists, arranging for Hope, who has ADHD, to be accepted into an exclusive school for children with special needs.

The story is based on a real-life situation in which John Lennon and Yoko Ono wrote a letter to the English folk singer Steve Tilston in 1971, but it remained unknown to him for 34 years.

[citation needed] In November 2010, Steve Carell was attached to star in the film, then titled Imagine, as the rocker's son, but he ultimately dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.

The site's critical consensus reads: "Thanks to Al Pacino's stirring central performance — and excellent work from an esteemed supporting cast — Danny Collins manages to overcome its more predictable and heavy-handed moments to deliver a heartfelt tale of redemption.