Audience: “The Kalamazoo Gazette”
Cruising around in a two-toned 1978 suburban, cigarette or whiskey in hand, shirt halfway unbuttoned, adorned with a cowboy hat and sunglasses, Bad Blake is the epitome of a country music star past his prime. Unfortunately Bad’s life story is no breath of fresh air. The phrase “recycled plotline” is far too gentle when describing “Crazy Heart.” It is still impossible to deny Scott Cooper’s cleverly written and directed adaptation of Thomas Cobb’s novel.
From the moment Bad rushes off stage mid-performance to vomit into a trashcan behind a bar and proceeds to pick his sunglasses out of the soiled can, his alcoholism and all around poisonous lifestyle become obvious. Just as obvious is the inspiration that will make him decide to turn his life around, which comes in the form of Jean Craddock, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal, a younger aspiring journalist. With his winning charm, Bad tells Jean, “I wanna talk about how bad you make this room look. I never knew what a dump it was until you came in here” and so a predictable romance ensues. A romance complicated by career, children and life choices that ends in the stereotypical way that all savior romances end: not happily ever after but lesson learned ever after.
Jeff Bridges, who released his album “Be Here Soon” in 2000, stars as the country has-been Bad Blake. Bridges pulls off the hard living star in an inescapably eccentric and, with pants unbuttoned, surprisingly charming manner. His one flaw, if it can even be called that, is his phenomenal chemistry with Jean’s son Buddy, played by Jack Nation. Their chemistry overshadows that of Bad and Jean but in a way that contributes to the couple’s connection. Any woman would fall for a man who could light up their child’s face with a simple game of table football, and Gyllenhaal portrays that woman magnificently. With every flip of her hair and crease of her brow, Gyllenhaal’s pain of loving an alcoholic is clear.
The most surprising performance comes from playboy Colin Farrell who plays Tommy Sweet, Bad’s old time friend. Farrell plays the on-again, off-again bromance with Bridges perfectly. Whether pleading with his big brown eyes or stealing the show, Farrell wins the hearts of all with his charisma.
Bridges and Farrell impressively contribute their own vocals in the film with help from vocal coach Roger Love. It is hard to find fault in their soothing harmonies when singing together, or Farrell’s pure diction and Bridges gravely tone. Both men added personality to “Crazy Heart’s” original music written by Stephen Bruton and T-Bone Burnett.
Cinematographer Barry Markowitz uses simplistic yet stunning camera angles to add to the allure of “Crazy Heart.” Utilizing the reflection in a window for dramatic effect is just one of the many notable cinematographic wonders that Markowitz creates in this film, contributing to the overall appeal of the flick.
Although “Crazy Heart” has a plotline that can be predicted within the first fifteen minutes, the other aspects of the film more than make up for it, creating an outstanding way to spend an evening.
I love the imagery in this review. You do a good job of showing the movie to the reader through your descriptions.
ReplyDeleteYou also did a great job of touching on several aspects of the film. I enjoyed your paragraphs about the acting, you portray the relationship between Blake and Buddy really well.
I would have liked to hear a little more about the stunning camera angles Barry Markowitz uses, but it is hard to expand on everything in such a short review.
I enjoyed reading your review. Great job overall!