Movie Review: Crazy Heart

THREE THINGS I LIKED:

1. THE DUDE ABIDES — You always love to see an under-appreciated old pro like Jeff Bridges get some long overdue recognition. As Bad Blake, the alcoholic country performer whose best days are behind him, Bridges sinks his teeth into the redemption role. Playing and singing all of the songs in Crazy Heart is almost certainly going to get Bridges an Oscar that many would say has probably been overdue anyway, but his performance here deserves to be celebrated for much more than just the impressive musical element. Indeed, the actor also nails every tiny detail in between the scenes showcasing his vocals or guitar, moments of both humor and human error that Bridges elevates from convention.
   
2. GIVE THAT CASTING DIRECTOR AN OSCAR TOO — It might sound odd to have Colin Farrell playing the part of Tommy Sweet, Bad's former protégé with whom there's a bitter relationship now that the young star has eclipsed his mentor. But as lukewarm as I was to using the Irishman at first, I came around by the film's end when it became clear that Farrell was indeed the right choice for a role that's supposed to be more of the trendy poseur to Bad's over-the-hill has-been. The dynamic between the two performers is made even better by writer/director Scott Cooper's decision to hint without fully disclosing specifics as to what caused the rift between Bad and Sweet. Maggie Gyllenhaal, bless her heart, lends her typically sweet touch to the role of a reporter who's also a single mom that in most lesser movies would have been a throwaway love interest.
   
3. IT FEELS LIKE FLYING MORE OFTEN THAN FALLING — Crazy Heart isn't going to surprise you, but it isn't going to bore you either. Even as we can anticipate what life's going to hand Bad next, we're still rooting for him every step along the way. The film's sentimental, but it's sincere too.
   

THREE THINGS I DIDN'T:

1. COUNTRY SONGS AND REDEMPTION TALES NEVER SEEM TO GET MADE WITHOUT CLICHÉS — Consider it this year's version of The Wrestler. Or Tender Mercies. Or ... you get the idea. (Robert Duvall actually makes an appearance here too, though he is not reprising Mac Sledge.)
   
2. EASY ON THE CONFLICT — Crazy Heart's so busy sketching out it's main character that you don't really notice that it never really spends much time constructing a plot. The movie relies on its performances to carry it through the third act developments that feel rather manufactured.
   
3. THIS IS ONLY GYLLENHAAL'S FIRST OSCAR NOMINATION? — Should have been at least two more that I can think of.
   

25 WORDS OR LESS:

Even when Crazy Heart feels like the country song you've heard before, Bridges' performance makes you want to listen one more time.