Bridges's Crazy Heart

Rating: Null/10 (18 February 2010)

Cooper's 'Crazy Heart' works better as a character study than a story driven piece of cinema. That is not to say that the story lacks meat. We initially follow bad, a talented musician but also an alcoholic, through his monotonous journey that involves broads, booze and music and in between he whines to his manager for a record deal. He's a friendly guy who's only occasionally a bit grumpy. Enter a young journalist, Jean, who wants to write an article and Bad's life begins to change. The romantic story is done with subtlety. I liked how clichés were avoided. The soundtrack is amazing. Just listen to the lyrics of each song (especially the last one) and you'll know how brilliant they are. Even the dialogues are offbeat and subtle with a great sense of humour. Moreover, Farrell and Bridges do nothing short of a fine job in the singing department. Now, the best thing about 'Crazy Heart' is undoubtedly Jeff Bridges. While Gyllenhaal, Farrell and Duvall are awesome, Bridges's tour de force performance overshadows everything else. On the down side, I thought the character Jean was underwritten and we pretty much only see her from Bad's point of view. 'Crazy Heart' is a simple, sincere and straightforward little film that one can easily appreciate and enjoy.