MOVIE REVIEW: Crazy Heart
© A.J. Malouin 2010
(Rating: 12 by The Film Snob, and not liked much by Patsy, either.)
(See our side-bar page “How We Rate Movies”)
(2009/USA. Directed and written by, with Thomas Cobb, Scott Cooper.)
The problem with “Crazy Heart” is that it’s not a story worth telling. We’ve seen it too many times! A broken-down old drunk country singer finds and loses love, repairs a rift he has had with a former partner, gets sober after an incident of the most-transparent nature, and, in the end hits The Big Time again. It’s all very annoying. Even worse, at 112 minutes, it feels way too long.
Some wonderful guns have been hired to tell the story, and they do their best to breathe life into this movie. Further, if you love Country Western music, you might find yourself tapping your toe a bit.
More likely, however, is that you’ll be tapping your wristwatch.
The most disappointing glitch in this thing is the casting of Maggie Gyllenhaal as The Love Interest for poor old broken-down Bad Blake, the hero of our story.
As Jean Craddock, Gyllenhaal flounces in all-young-jounralist to do an article on this once-famous Bad Blake. Suddenly the two of them are A Couple, and no one knows why. Gyllenhaal is a joy to watch, as is Jeff Bridges for the most part, but it is Just Unbelievable that Jean would fall for Blake.
May/December romances *do* happen…especially in the movies. This romance, however, has no basis that we can see.
Please give Bad Blake someone closer to his station in life.
Robert Duvall is his usual workman Duvallian self as the buddy who helps Bad Blake get turned around as regards Blake’s drunkenness. When Duvall’s character croons a cappella to Bad Blake while the two of them are lazing in a fishing boat, you will need all your Country Western appreciation to appreciate it.
Likewise for Duvall’s encore over the closing credits.
Colin Farrell walks cleanly through his role as Tommy Sweet, the country singer whose star rose as Bad Blake’s fell. Sweet did Blake wrong somewhere earlier. Blake is annoyed by it throughout the early part of this movie, but we never find out *exactly* what Sweet did to him that Blake finds so annoying.
For this, WE are annoyed.
There is an awful lot of Average in this movie. Both Patsy and The Film Snob wondered aloud and often at all the hoopla generated about it by the critics and awards shows.
If you love Country Western music, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Colin Farrell, Robert Duvall, and/or Jeff Bridges, you probably should rent this movie…some day.
When you do, be prepared to be disappointed.
(1 hr 52. Rated “R” in the USA for language and brief sexuality. In English. With Jeff Bridges as Bad Blake, James Keane as his manager, Colin Farrell as Tommy Sweet, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Jean Craddock, Jack Nation as Buddy, Paul Herman as Jack Greene, Tom Bower as Bill Wilson, Ryan Bingham as Tony, Beth Grant as Jo Ann, Rick Dial, Wesley Barnes, Debrianna Mansini as Ann, Ryil Adamson as Ralphie, J. Michael Oliva as Bear, David Manzanares as Nick, William Marquez as the doctor, and Robert Duvall as Wayne.)