Girlz Lyfe Review of Crazy Heart

As a sucker for movies and books that showcase the human spirit overcoming difficulties, I knew from the trailer that I had to watch this movie.

‘Bad’ Blake (played by Oscar winner Jeff Bridges), a washed-up country music singer, spends his days driving from small town to small town to make it to gigs in bowling alleys and tiny bars. As if this isn’t enough of a thorn in the side to this once great star, he lives with the knowledge that the young singer he mentored (played by Colin Ferrell) is now selling albums like crazy with a career that is better than ever.

It’s in one of those small towns where Bad meets a journalist named Jean Craddock (Maggie Gyllenhaal) who is interested in interviewing him for the newspaper. After a few meetings, their witty banter turns into a relationship which is fed through long-distance trips after Bad goes back on the road. His alcoholism quickly becomes an issue for Jean, who has a very young son.

It’s this alcohol problem that has caused Bad to lose several wives and miss out on the life of his 30-something year old estranged son. However, the interaction between Bad and Jean’s son inspires the country singer to contact his son, who wants nothing to do with him. Despite Jean’s pleas, Bad continues to drink. After a scary incident where Bad loses Jean’s 4-year old son, she breaks off the relationship. It’s somewhat of a wake up call to the singer, who is heartbroken and riddled with guilt.

I think this movie is a beautiful example of how the human spirit can endure, and how we can all change for the better if we only find a reason and some hope to see us through. While I don’t want to ruin the ending, I’ll say that I was satisfied with the way the story turned out. It was very interesting, and kept my attention throughout. I’d have to give this movie a 6 out of a possible 10. One of my favorite parts of the movie is the cleansing process Bad goes through as he writes the ‘hit’ song that won Best Original Song at the Academy Awards. You’d definitely be missing out if you didn’t watch this one!