Crazy Heart

After finally seeing Crazy Heart, I am certain that Jeff Bridges deserved every award he won for that movie. He even could have had me as a trophy--even though an Oscar is way more discriminating than I am--because Jeff Bridges is one sexy beast.

Crazy Heart could have gone down a common path. It could have followed the road about the hard-living country singer whose protege turns on him. Crazy Heart is smarter than that. Instead, the movie centers on Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges), who is Tommy Sweet's mentor (played by Colin Farrell in a surprisingly understated performance). Tommy wants to see Bad succeed, but it's hard to support a friend and mentor who hits the bottle too hard to stay on track and who refuses to write more songs, even though the songwriting is the most lucrative part about Bad's career.

Bad Blake is a guy who used to be a star; now he plays bowling alleys. Bad behaves how he believes country artists should behave. He knows you've got to have a signature liquor and a womanizer reputation. That lifestyle is how good songs are sung. More importantly, that's how good songs are written. Bad's charm on-stage and off is what ultimately aids Bad in bedding the local reporter, played by Maggie Gylenhaal. With that romance comes the best line I've ever heard on stage or off. Bad tells her, "I want to talk about how bad you're making this room look." That's a poet's line, and that's what Bad is.

Because of this raw performance by Jeff Bridges, I began to understand how heartbreaking authentic country music can be when it's performed by honest singer/songwriters. They are the ones confronting life. Sometimes, a hard life feels worth it; sometimes, the song is that good.