Crazy Heart Review

Thursday, February 25, 2010 , Posted by Should I See It at 2:54 PM



Film: Crazy Heart
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhall, Robert Duvall and Colin Farrell
Plot: A fading country singer, Bad Blake, grapples with his alcohol addiction, especially after he meets Jean and her young son Buddy.

I went to see Crazy Heart only because I want to see the performance that is going to win Jeff Bridges the Academy Award.

Well, let’s start off by saying, Jeff Bridges is good. He is very good. He inhabits the role, right down to the physical aspect.

But I couldn’t help feeling like he was playing Mickey Rourke, if Mickey Rourke was a country singer instead of an actor.

Colin Farrell also makes an appearance as fellow country singer (but the far more successful) Tommy Sweet. He manages to do quite a bit with not very much screen time.

One point worth mentioning is that both Farrell and Bridges do their own singing. And I have to admit they both have good voices. And I am not just talking about “they can sing.” What is actually impressive is that “they can sing country!” and sound authentic without being overly nasal or whiny.



Now country music is not exactly my idea of a great time, but the original songs composed by T-Bone Brunett, Stephen Bruton and Ryan Bingham are surprisingly not annoying. Actually, they are quite beautiful, particularly ‘The Weary Kind’ which is one of the front runners to win the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

I can appreciate the performance of Bridges. I can appreciate what it means dor an alcoholic to say ‘I want to get sober’. But I could not connect with this film or its characters.

I don’t really have sympathy for Bad. He continues to drink without trying to change his situation. (He drinks so much in the film that within the first ten minutes I was seriously concerned about the state of his insides).



I don’t understand the relationship between Jean and Bad. I actually don’t understand her actions at all. It is implied that her ex-husband was an alcoholic, and yet she willingly takes Bad into her home, heart and bed, and then is upset when it backfires on her.

The most likeable character ends up being Jean’s four-year old son, Buddy.

I know that these judgements say more about me as a person, than it does about the film itself, but for me part of what makes a good film is for it to allow the audience to be emotionally invested in the characters and the film’s outcome. If I don’t care about the characters, then I don’t care for the film.



Should I See It?

Hmmm. Only if you’re interested in seeing Jeff Bridges performance. Otherwise, skip it.




 
Crazy Heart Official Site here.