Jeff Bridges has been nominated for four Oscars. He's been nominated for four Golden Globes. He's been nominated for four Independent Spirit Awards and three SAG Awards. That's 15 nominations. And he's only won once, the '92 Spirit Award for "American Heart." But it's certainly possible that his status as the Susan Lucci of film awards will change this year, because he's more than assured an Oscar nomination for his role in Scott Cooper's new film "Crazy Heart." It's a terrific performance, and with all that history behind him, well, let's just say he has a shot—or at least a shot glass—at a walk to the podium.
Bridges is Bad Blake, a faded country music star with a serious drinking problem. He's resigned himself to a life alone, driving hundreds of miles between crappy gigs in small towns, accompanied only by the bottle he pees in to save time. He's a mess, a screwed-up guy whose best days are behind him, so when Jean Craddock (Maggie Gyllenhaal), an up-and-coming music writer in Santa Fe wants and interview, he reluctantly cooperates. But here's the thing. Bad's got a bad name, and he lives a bad life. He drinks to excess, sleeps with groupies in each city, and is essentially broke. But he's not a bad guy. He has a sweet heart, even if he doesn't always show it. And eventually, he shows it to Jean. She's a single mom, and he falls for both her and her little boy, especially after he finds himself needing a little TLC.
"Crazy Heart" works because even though Bad is so determined to screw up his own life, other people are looking out for him. Beyond Jean, there's his manager. There's Tommy Sweet (Colin Farrell), Bad's onetime protégé who has hit the big time. And there's Wayne (Robert Duvall, who also served as a producer), the owner of the bar Bad plays in when he's living at home, who Bad eventually turns to when his problem with the sauce eventually drives Jean away.
The film is nicely shot, with a great soundtrack and a decent script. But it does have a ceiling—we've seen plenty of clean-and-sober pictures before, and eventually and essentially, that's what "Crazy Heart" is. Sure, you feel for Bad, even as he makes his terrible decisions, and even as he lets the bottle get the best of him. That said, even though you've seen it before, Bridges gives an absolutely outstanding performance as Bad, a country singer whose entire life might as well be a country song.
