Crazy Heart
Crazy Heart (2009)
Crazy Heart is a very moving character study, even though repeat viewings have revealed some flaws in the final act. The lead performances are stellar. Jeff Bridges so completely inhabits Bad Blake, an over the hill country music singer from Texas whose best days are far behind him, it feels like Bridges has been playing Blake his whole career. He often wears a cowboy hat, like a lot of Texans from that generation and Bridges relates the character’s backstory as a weathered man without sentimentality. Bad Blake is the kind of guy anyone would love to hang out with but for much of the film you would not want to attach yourself to him too much or you will be hurt. The beauty of the film is that the viewer sees the cyclical nature of how much Blake has lost with his drinking and how he unsuccessfully hides from his pain by going to the bottle.
The film clearly establishes how talented Blake is. He loves country music and writes appealing and occasionally soulful songs. For some reason country songs are often much more direct with their lyrics so it is sometimes easier to get the message than with other types of music which can be more subtle (or in which the words are sometimes harder to hear). After seeing this film I immediately had to get the music for it as I could not get “Flying and Falling” out of my head. A repeat viewing led me to pay much more attention to “The Weary Kind”. “Flying and Falling” is more catchy, and more lightly covers the carefree aspects of Bad Blake’s life. “The Weary Kind” represents the depth of his character and what the pain of his alcoholism has done to him. Another song that has gotten a little less attention but that I think also is indicative of his character at a particular stage in the film is “Brand New Angel”, which is the song Blake gives at his first sober performance.
The story covers a period in Blake’s life in his late fifties at which three significant things happen to him. First, he falls in love with a younger woman who has a son who represents a second opportunity to have a family since he walked away from his son (and several wives). Second, Blake gradually accepts that his singing careers has long since peaked but that he still has a lot of talent as a writer, enhanced by his life experience. Third, and most significantly, he takes responsibility for his drinking and goes into rehabilitation. In the beginning of the film he is traveling to small venues to perform his hits. He is almost broke in part because these jobs do not pay much but mostly because he blows every dime he earns on alcohol.
The film opens with Blake driving through the Southwest in his 1978 Ford Silverado. The car chugs along slowly and alone with a lot of traffic going the other way, establishing Blake goes his own way, against the grain. The car, like Blake is still running but sometimes does not start right up and like Blake badly needs a wash. He pulls out a two gallon plastic milk container that he uses to urinate in during his drives, and dumps it right in the parking lot. Blake feels that the locale is way beneath him though the owner of the alley is a big fan of his. I felt bad for the owner in the scene where the owner cannot allow him to run up a bar tab but offers him free bowling. It meant a lot to the owner but Bad could care less about free bowling and just wants a drink after his long drive. There is an interesting scene in which Blake is not recognized by the young girl at the bar and how this seemed to surprise him. I had a similar experience one time when I was younger and worked in a store and I waited on the singer Clint Holmes. I needed to ask for his ID and he was surprised that I needed to do so but since I did not listen to his music it meant little to me until someone else recognized him.
Blake is miserable throughout these early scenes in which we see that he works with local bands since he cannot afford to travel with one. Blake does himself no favors by refusing to rehearse with the local band and rudely only turns up right before the show is about to begin. During the show while singing a song for a patron who had given him a bottle of his favorite whiskey, he has to go out back and throw up. The entire experience is embarrassing and I felt it bold to open the film with the protagonist behaving in such a manner. To top off his visit Blake sleeps with a middle aged barmaid who he then walks out on, giving the impression he does this a lot.
When Blake visits Santa Fe the story takes its first turn. First he hears the bar owner playing the piano and immediately bonds with him. Then the owner sets up an interview with his niece, Jean, who is a writer for the local paper. Jean, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal is an intelligent young single mother who is clearly a fan of country music and but knows enough of Blake’s life not to be overwhelmed by him. Blake is charmed Jean's self assuredness and has the film’s best line when she is speaking to him in his cheap hotel room and he says to her “I had no idea how bad this room looked until you came here”. When he performs he does so with much more enthusiasm, mainly because he has a buzz for her.
Jean also likes Blake and sleeps with him (after conducting the second interview while lying next to him on his motel bed) but the next morning he is clearly falling in love and she, although she does not express it, has mixed feelings as Blake's alcoholism is pretty apparent and she has a four year old son. After Blake meets Jean's son Blake is refreshed but Jean is clearly conflicted at letting him this much into her personal life, begins to show.
When Blake gets to Phoenix he is given the chance to open for Tommy Suite, who is a current country star who had gotten his start playing in Blake’s band. This relationship allows for another look into Blake’s wounded pride at his fallen status. He initially does not want to play second banana to Tommy but of course recognizes that it could give his career some much needed momentum. I particularly liked the scene where he is fighting for the sound to be at the same level as for Tommy. When Blake starts performing he opens by singing his biggest hit, Fallin’ & Flying, and the reaction is lukewarm, until Tommy appears on the stage. The audience starts to scream and Blake realizes it is not for his song but for the fact that Tommy is there. Tommy sings part of the song and then gives the mike back to Blake. Blake, burying his pride, continues to share the song with Tommy and the audience from there appears to be more into him.
When Blake stays with Jean after his accident Jean immediately shuts down the possibility of marriage which is an early sign that she sees no future with him. In the same scene she quietly asks Blake not to drink in front of Buddy, which is about the only way she can justify to herself keeping him around her son. In another more painful scene he writes The Weary Kind while lying on her bed and she breaks down saying she will never be able to forget her wrote a song on her bed. I like one line she has in which she says “people wait their whole lives to write a song like that and it just pours out of you”. She is admitting without saying out loud that she knows the relationship will not work out and he thinks she is saying that he is going to leave her.
During these scenes Jean is constantly wary of having Blake and Buddy too close to each other and in one scene she is about to take Buddy to preschool and Blake offers to look after him for the day. Immediately a sense of dread enters the scene as it is clear an alcoholic should not be looking after a young child alone. When Jean panics at not finding Blake and Buddy, even though they turn up right away there is a strong sense that the relief is temporary.
Then there is a time jump to over a year later and Tommy is performing “The Weary Kind" at a large outdoor venue and Blake is peacefully watching backstage next to his manager (who he treats kindly for the first time), having performed a set, still sober and past his jealousy. Blake is still singing but is not living on it. When Jean appears, now engaged, Blake is supportive. The vibe between them is strong and Jean is nice because she no longer has to resist him. When Jean becomes defensive about Blake offer to give the royalty check to Buddy Blake claims, without losing composure himself, that they deserve it since he would not have written the song if it had not been for her (it is the song he wrote on her bed). Jean then offers to take him to Buddy but he recognizes it would be confusing for Buddy to see him again (also another actor would probably be needed). The film ends with them walking off and beginning the interview, together for the moment. ****
Crazy Heart is a very moving character study, even though repeat viewings have revealed some flaws in the final act. The lead performances are stellar. Jeff Bridges so completely inhabits Bad Blake, an over the hill country music singer from Texas whose best days are far behind him, it feels like Bridges has been playing Blake his whole career. He often wears a cowboy hat, like a lot of Texans from that generation and Bridges relates the character’s backstory as a weathered man without sentimentality. Bad Blake is the kind of guy anyone would love to hang out with but for much of the film you would not want to attach yourself to him too much or you will be hurt. The beauty of the film is that the viewer sees the cyclical nature of how much Blake has lost with his drinking and how he unsuccessfully hides from his pain by going to the bottle.
The film clearly establishes how talented Blake is. He loves country music and writes appealing and occasionally soulful songs. For some reason country songs are often much more direct with their lyrics so it is sometimes easier to get the message than with other types of music which can be more subtle (or in which the words are sometimes harder to hear). After seeing this film I immediately had to get the music for it as I could not get “Flying and Falling” out of my head. A repeat viewing led me to pay much more attention to “The Weary Kind”. “Flying and Falling” is more catchy, and more lightly covers the carefree aspects of Bad Blake’s life. “The Weary Kind” represents the depth of his character and what the pain of his alcoholism has done to him. Another song that has gotten a little less attention but that I think also is indicative of his character at a particular stage in the film is “Brand New Angel”, which is the song Blake gives at his first sober performance.
The story covers a period in Blake’s life in his late fifties at which three significant things happen to him. First, he falls in love with a younger woman who has a son who represents a second opportunity to have a family since he walked away from his son (and several wives). Second, Blake gradually accepts that his singing careers has long since peaked but that he still has a lot of talent as a writer, enhanced by his life experience. Third, and most significantly, he takes responsibility for his drinking and goes into rehabilitation. In the beginning of the film he is traveling to small venues to perform his hits. He is almost broke in part because these jobs do not pay much but mostly because he blows every dime he earns on alcohol.
The film opens with Blake driving through the Southwest in his 1978 Ford Silverado. The car chugs along slowly and alone with a lot of traffic going the other way, establishing Blake goes his own way, against the grain. The car, like Blake is still running but sometimes does not start right up and like Blake badly needs a wash. He pulls out a two gallon plastic milk container that he uses to urinate in during his drives, and dumps it right in the parking lot. Blake feels that the locale is way beneath him though the owner of the alley is a big fan of his. I felt bad for the owner in the scene where the owner cannot allow him to run up a bar tab but offers him free bowling. It meant a lot to the owner but Bad could care less about free bowling and just wants a drink after his long drive. There is an interesting scene in which Blake is not recognized by the young girl at the bar and how this seemed to surprise him. I had a similar experience one time when I was younger and worked in a store and I waited on the singer Clint Holmes. I needed to ask for his ID and he was surprised that I needed to do so but since I did not listen to his music it meant little to me until someone else recognized him.
Blake is miserable throughout these early scenes in which we see that he works with local bands since he cannot afford to travel with one. Blake does himself no favors by refusing to rehearse with the local band and rudely only turns up right before the show is about to begin. During the show while singing a song for a patron who had given him a bottle of his favorite whiskey, he has to go out back and throw up. The entire experience is embarrassing and I felt it bold to open the film with the protagonist behaving in such a manner. To top off his visit Blake sleeps with a middle aged barmaid who he then walks out on, giving the impression he does this a lot.
When Blake visits Santa Fe the story takes its first turn. First he hears the bar owner playing the piano and immediately bonds with him. Then the owner sets up an interview with his niece, Jean, who is a writer for the local paper. Jean, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal is an intelligent young single mother who is clearly a fan of country music and but knows enough of Blake’s life not to be overwhelmed by him. Blake is charmed Jean's self assuredness and has the film’s best line when she is speaking to him in his cheap hotel room and he says to her “I had no idea how bad this room looked until you came here”. When he performs he does so with much more enthusiasm, mainly because he has a buzz for her.
Jean also likes Blake and sleeps with him (after conducting the second interview while lying next to him on his motel bed) but the next morning he is clearly falling in love and she, although she does not express it, has mixed feelings as Blake's alcoholism is pretty apparent and she has a four year old son. After Blake meets Jean's son Blake is refreshed but Jean is clearly conflicted at letting him this much into her personal life, begins to show.
When Blake gets to Phoenix he is given the chance to open for Tommy Suite, who is a current country star who had gotten his start playing in Blake’s band. This relationship allows for another look into Blake’s wounded pride at his fallen status. He initially does not want to play second banana to Tommy but of course recognizes that it could give his career some much needed momentum. I particularly liked the scene where he is fighting for the sound to be at the same level as for Tommy. When Blake starts performing he opens by singing his biggest hit, Fallin’ & Flying, and the reaction is lukewarm, until Tommy appears on the stage. The audience starts to scream and Blake realizes it is not for his song but for the fact that Tommy is there. Tommy sings part of the song and then gives the mike back to Blake. Blake, burying his pride, continues to share the song with Tommy and the audience from there appears to be more into him.
When Blake stays with Jean after his accident Jean immediately shuts down the possibility of marriage which is an early sign that she sees no future with him. In the same scene she quietly asks Blake not to drink in front of Buddy, which is about the only way she can justify to herself keeping him around her son. In another more painful scene he writes The Weary Kind while lying on her bed and she breaks down saying she will never be able to forget her wrote a song on her bed. I like one line she has in which she says “people wait their whole lives to write a song like that and it just pours out of you”. She is admitting without saying out loud that she knows the relationship will not work out and he thinks she is saying that he is going to leave her.
During these scenes Jean is constantly wary of having Blake and Buddy too close to each other and in one scene she is about to take Buddy to preschool and Blake offers to look after him for the day. Immediately a sense of dread enters the scene as it is clear an alcoholic should not be looking after a young child alone. When Jean panics at not finding Blake and Buddy, even though they turn up right away there is a strong sense that the relief is temporary.
When Blake goes back to Houston we see him around an old friend, Wayne, who owns a bar where Blakes plays, played by Robert Duvall. He has a Hispanic employee named Juan (who does not speak English very well) who Wayne keeps calling Jesus. One is inclined to think he might be a little racist but Wayne is kind to Juan and clearly enjoys a camaraderie with him.
At Jean’s encouraging, Blake contacts his son, who he has not been in touch with for over 20 years. The son, whose mother has died (which Blake knew nothing about) wants nothing to do with him. We never see the son, our only exposure to him is hearing him on the phone. The son, like his dad, is direct and shuts him out.
Blake in response gets very drunk and when Jean and Buddy call him the next morning to thank him for some gifts he sent to Buddy. Blake is too hungover to talk and throws up loudly. The next morning Jean calls him again sitting outside, clearly so Buddy will not hear him drunk again) and he lies, for the only time I can think of in the film, and says he had food poisoning. Jean clearly does not believe it. Blake, however is sober at the time, having enjoyed an afternoon peacefully fishing with Wayne, and since his state catches her a little off guard he manages to convince her to come to Houston for a visit with Buddy.
Blake again offers to take Buddy for a few hours and even though he usually is good with Buddy, he brings him to a bar in a mall. Blake orders a strong drink and Buddy wanders off and gets lost and there are a few wrenching scenes in which Blake, now a little drunk, helplessly looks for him, painfully limping since he is walking too fast on his tender ankle. When Jean arrives at the mall she she does not even want to look at Blake but does not go into histrionics at that point, her main concern being Buddy at that time. When Buddy is found after what appears to be a couple of hours. Jean immediately packs her suitcases and she and Buddy leave. Gyllenhaal is amazing in this scene as she is she is trying to keep Blake away while simultaneously trying to keep Buddy from seeing how bad things are. After Blake again gets drunk when he wakes up he decides to get sober.
Blake is shown, from a distance, entering rehab and at his first group session admitting what alcohol has cost him. However from this point the film is a little unfocused as after briefly showing Blake in the tranquil setting of the rehab it skips forward to when he leaves. Since the whole film has shown how his alcoholism has destroyed his life to not show him fighting the withdrawal or doing any part of a 12 step program or any other part of the rehab process seems like a bit of a cheat. It is not clear how long Blake is in rehab but when Wayne comes to get him he good naturedly claims to have “licked this thing” and never again seems to be tempted by the bottle.
In Blake’s first performance after coming out of rehab he sings a slow ballad called Brand New Angel, which he seems to have written while in rehab. He sings it with a strong but calm voice and is sitting down when he performs it, unlike his other songs which are more energetic. Many addicts embrace religion for guidance while in rehab but, since we saw so little of Blake’s visit to rehab nor any hint of him discussing religion with anyone, the scene is not as effective as it could be.
When Blake goes to see Jean there is no scene of him deciding to visit or nervously driving the 879 miles to Santa Fe. He just appears walking up to her door, which makes it feel like an unearned moment. Although Blake comes clean Jean rarely looks him in the eye and understandably cannot give him another chance. She feels guilty for ignoring her own instincts and letting this alcoholic into her son's life. If you look at the scene from her point of view it is clear that Jean has to end the conversation or she might give in.
Blake in response gets very drunk and when Jean and Buddy call him the next morning to thank him for some gifts he sent to Buddy. Blake is too hungover to talk and throws up loudly. The next morning Jean calls him again sitting outside, clearly so Buddy will not hear him drunk again) and he lies, for the only time I can think of in the film, and says he had food poisoning. Jean clearly does not believe it. Blake, however is sober at the time, having enjoyed an afternoon peacefully fishing with Wayne, and since his state catches her a little off guard he manages to convince her to come to Houston for a visit with Buddy.
Blake again offers to take Buddy for a few hours and even though he usually is good with Buddy, he brings him to a bar in a mall. Blake orders a strong drink and Buddy wanders off and gets lost and there are a few wrenching scenes in which Blake, now a little drunk, helplessly looks for him, painfully limping since he is walking too fast on his tender ankle. When Jean arrives at the mall she she does not even want to look at Blake but does not go into histrionics at that point, her main concern being Buddy at that time. When Buddy is found after what appears to be a couple of hours. Jean immediately packs her suitcases and she and Buddy leave. Gyllenhaal is amazing in this scene as she is she is trying to keep Blake away while simultaneously trying to keep Buddy from seeing how bad things are. After Blake again gets drunk when he wakes up he decides to get sober.
Blake is shown, from a distance, entering rehab and at his first group session admitting what alcohol has cost him. However from this point the film is a little unfocused as after briefly showing Blake in the tranquil setting of the rehab it skips forward to when he leaves. Since the whole film has shown how his alcoholism has destroyed his life to not show him fighting the withdrawal or doing any part of a 12 step program or any other part of the rehab process seems like a bit of a cheat. It is not clear how long Blake is in rehab but when Wayne comes to get him he good naturedly claims to have “licked this thing” and never again seems to be tempted by the bottle.
In Blake’s first performance after coming out of rehab he sings a slow ballad called Brand New Angel, which he seems to have written while in rehab. He sings it with a strong but calm voice and is sitting down when he performs it, unlike his other songs which are more energetic. Many addicts embrace religion for guidance while in rehab but, since we saw so little of Blake’s visit to rehab nor any hint of him discussing religion with anyone, the scene is not as effective as it could be.
When Blake goes to see Jean there is no scene of him deciding to visit or nervously driving the 879 miles to Santa Fe. He just appears walking up to her door, which makes it feel like an unearned moment. Although Blake comes clean Jean rarely looks him in the eye and understandably cannot give him another chance. She feels guilty for ignoring her own instincts and letting this alcoholic into her son's life. If you look at the scene from her point of view it is clear that Jean has to end the conversation or she might give in.
If this is supposed to be a long time later (perhaps six months or a year) it does not feel that way because his previous scene with Jean ended just a few minutes before. If there were ever a moment for Blake to possibly relapse this would be it. But the scene then cuts to him doing yardwork and cleaning up his house. It could send the message that he is using his pain productively and sweating it out, but it feels like a late editing decision. The reason for this is in one or two of the shots he is wearing his ankle cast which tells me these scenes were originally filmed to take place immediately prior to Jean and Buddy’s arrival.
Then there is a time jump to over a year later and Tommy is performing “The Weary Kind" at a large outdoor venue and Blake is peacefully watching backstage next to his manager (who he treats kindly for the first time), having performed a set, still sober and past his jealousy. Blake is still singing but is not living on it. When Jean appears, now engaged, Blake is supportive. The vibe between them is strong and Jean is nice because she no longer has to resist him. When Jean becomes defensive about Blake offer to give the royalty check to Buddy Blake claims, without losing composure himself, that they deserve it since he would not have written the song if it had not been for her (it is the song he wrote on her bed). Jean then offers to take him to Buddy but he recognizes it would be confusing for Buddy to see him again (also another actor would probably be needed). The film ends with them walking off and beginning the interview, together for the moment. ****
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