I don't think Hank would have done it this way.

Rating: 6/10 (25 April 2010)

'Bad' Blake (Jeff Bridges), a down-and-out country artist gets involved with a young journalist (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and finds himself forced to reassess his life. CRAZY HEART is the debut film from director-writer Scott Cooper, and it's a solid film with an outstanding performance by a chain smoking and heavy drinking Jeff Bridges. When Gyllenhaal's character asks him where his songs comes from, he simply says "life unfortunately". Many proclaimed it to be 2009's THE WRESTLER, and as there are many similarities, this film doesn't have the same emotional resonance as Mickey Rourke's definitive film. But one of the great equalities, is the atmospheric milieu the actions take place, and Blake wanders around classic southwestern bars and motel rooms. The songs Blake plays are good, and they're written originally by Stephen Bruton and T-Bone Burnett. Other characters easily pales compared to Blake, but they all hold crafts and adds elements to Blake's flawed character. The direction seems to be floating in a worn out country heart of past and depressing present, and so the film doesn't seem to have a very distinct direction, but dialogs of plain simpleness and a careful pace makes it entertaining to the finale.