Review of Crazy Heart (2009) by Chris D — 12 Feb 2011

I was excited to see this movie. I'd heard from many friends of mine that this was one of Jeff Bridges's best performances in years. I myself am a huge fan of his work. I loved him in "The Big Lebowski," "Fearless" and "The Men Who Stare At Goats." I anticipated another Oscar-worthy performance from him, and I wasn't disappointed.

The character of Bad Blake was perfect for Jeff -- he was born to play it. Throughout the entire film I completely lost Jeff Bridges the actor and only saw Bad Blake the country legend. I wish I could say the same for Maggie Gyllenhaal, who played Jean Craddock the journalist/love interest. Don't get me wrong, I love Maggie but she just didn't do anything spectacular in this film. I only saw her playing herself. I'm not sure the director didn't write the part for Maggie and cast Maggie because he wanted Maggie, but compared to Jeff Bridges she was a disappointment.

That's not to say the movie was without any flaws, I thought that the script was rushed, flat and very disappointing. I thought that the romance between Bad Blake and Jean was overplayed and obvious, you knew they were going to get together eventually but it should have happened after you got to know the characters a bit. Overall I'd "bring a date" to this movie, it is an enjoyable film and worth a watch.