Review of Born to Be Blue (2015) by Gina W — 04 Sep 2016

I really, really liked "Born To Be Blue". Not only is it one of my favorite films of 2016, but might just be one of my favorite biopics of all time. Now, I assume that some of the things in the film is not 100% accurate, and that they are there to give dramatic heft to the story and that is fine.

I heard this film being described as an anti-biopic, and I'm sure that some of Baker enthusiasts might not like the film at all and that is completely fine. The main reason why I enjoyed this film is because I found this character very relatable; here is a highly insecure, fragile, yet incredibly talented artist who has been fighting with his inner demon all his life; a genius who has a thing for drugs and sex, and personally I love films in which someone tries hard to overcome the weakest and darkest side of them, and I just connected with him at a gut level.

Ethan Hawke is really great as Chet Baker, it is beautifully directed, beautifully shot, the music is fantastic, and I loved its non-hagiographic approach to his life. I really, really liked it.