Crazy Heart (2009)

Directed by: Scott Cooper
Written by: Scott Cooper
Based on book by: Thomas Cobb

When your truck runs away from you and your dog stalls, where else can you turn but country music? How about these trailers?

THE GHOST WRITER–Man, Roman Polanski’s in a lot of trouble these days, huh? Well, let’s see how that translates into box office for the last movie he may ever be allowed to direct. It looks like a pretty run of the mill thriller about a writer (Ewan McGregor) who is hired to write the bio of a politician (Pierce Brosnan). Good? I’m sure. Amazing? Probably not. But I’ll see it.

DATE NIGHT–Another one that I’ll probably check out on video. Steve Carell and Kristen Wiig are a couple who take another couple’s table at a posh restaurant and then get stuck in the middle of a heist or a murder or both. The trailer looks pretty funny, but I have a feeling that the movie sucks balls. I like Steve and Kristen, though, so I might give it a chance later on. Yay for Netflix! I don’t have to feel guilty about ANYTHING!
GREENBERG–Noah Baumbach hasn’t made a bad film in a while. Give him time, though. He’s only made a few recently, so he’s got PLENTY of time to start on his Mr. Jealousy trend again. Greenberg, though, looks like another really good one. Ben Stiller (don’t leave yet!) is a loser who moves from NYC to LA to housesit for his brother. Jennifer Jason Leigh is the love interest and co-wrote the script. I’m for it!

Now, how’s this broken-hearted movie?

As a rule, I hate country music. It’s just not my thing. I have a few exceptions, but they tend to be people who are already dead or are, unfortunately, probably close to it. Because, honestly, the last time country was good was in the 50s. Johnny and Willie kept it going through some pretty hard times. They kept it going through Kenny Rogers, for Waylon’s sake! Why do you think country-rock was king in the 70s? The Eagles and Linda Ronstadt were WAY better than any of the bullshit coming out of Nashville (or wherever country was coming from) at the time.

I say that upfront to let you know that, really, this is not a movie that I would have been clamoring for if it weren’t for Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal and the one man who can lately get me interested in the music in a country-centric movie, T-Bone Burnett. He knows what country is actually all about and doesn’t get stupid hat acts to pump their wares in movies that he has anything to do with.

Be that as it may, I was in the audience and I’m glad I was.

Bad Blake (Bridges) is a lost man. He wrote plenty of huge hits back in the day, but now he’s basically forgotten. The only people who remember him are the older folks who remember the glory days and, to some extent, the kid he helped make famous with his songs and a string of duet albums, Tommy Sweet (Colin Farrell).

On Bad’s way around the Southwest, he meets Jean (Gyllenhaal), a young reporter who wants to interview him. Could she be his salvation? Or will his alcoholism and self-destructive behavior be too much for her and her little boy? Will Tommy ever show his true thanks to the old man who made him what he is today?

Bridges portrayal of a man on the downward spiral of life is pretty amazing. Imagine The Dude as a real person. (Director Scott Cooper even uses the same angle that the Coens did at one point to show how far Bad has fallen.) Now give him a reason to dig himself out of the whole that he has dug for himself. Now imagine him fighting with himself the whole way. ADD to that the fact that he does all of his own singing and you’ve got Oscar-bait all over the place. He’s great, as always, and deserves every bit of the hype that he’s getting for it.

Maggie is every bit as good as a young mother just trying to keep a good man good. The rest of the supporting cast manages to keep up with them, too. Robert Duvall is great as the sage-like bartender/best friend in Houston. James Keane is slimy, but caring as Bad’s manager. And Colin is…well, actually he’s kind of a weak link. His singing is ok, so it’s not that. I think it’s the fact that he never seems to look his mentor in the eye. He acts like he’s putting on a show at all times. And maybe that’s the point, because those douchebags ARE always putting on a show. He always has his head down and looks out of the top of his eyelids like he’s trying to be “humble,” but still a rebel. It’s a horrible trend started with people like Dwight Yoakum in the 90s.

So, maybe Colin was perfect. But he was annoying me. And I like the guy. I actually don’t think he’s a terrible actor like a lot of people think. But he kind of annoyed me in this.

Now, let’s talk about the music. Not being a fan of the genre, it’s hard for me to be totally into the music. BUT it’s T-Bone, so I know it’s good. It’s definitely a cut above most of the crap I hear from “country” artists these days. And “The Weary Kind” definitely deserves it’s Oscar nom. It’s a very good song, especially when sung by someone with a world weary voice like Jeff. (When youngster Ryan Bingham sings it, it loses a LOT of its power. Still not bad, but it needs to have an older voice on it.)

My only real beef with the movie is really the ending. There’s a point where I really think that if it had ended there, it would have been a fucking masterpiece. As it is, though, it’s the Hollywood version of The Hank Williams Story. Luckily, though, the story, characters and script are good enough that I can overlook the semi-tacked on ending. It’s not a bad ending, by any means. It just kind of seems like something that the studio dreamed up because the story was so bleak.

Either way, it’s a great film with a lot of great performances and some very good music. Check it out and see the performance that is going to finally win Jeff Bridges an Oscar.