Springsteen: Música de ninguna parte

Where you come from is gone. Where you thought you were going was never there." Flannery O'Connor

Writer/director Scott Coopeer's Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere has Flannery's dark but open celebration of life, where Bruce (Jeremy Allen White) has been-from an unsettling place with his erratic father and loving mother to Bruce's own struggles with depression. Therefore, this is an introspective take, not the bombastic but splashy Bohemian Rhapsody.

Although this bio is small by most standards of musical stories and covers only a few of his years, it gets to places in the artist's psyche only a few have ever gone. It obviates my concern that the big bios are about melodies and groupies, not the inspiring creative process of the musician. In a sense, Bob Dylan's story in A Complete Unknown (2024) came close to the interior look that Springsteen's story does.

While we witness the conflicts of birthing Nebraska and its inherent darkness, Cooper and co-writer Warren Zanes (the story is adapted from his Springsteen bio) gently and slowly hint at the life-changing song Born in the USA. They well document the Boss's struggle between promoting albums and benefiting from the hit single return, violating his prime directive to present the whole story in an album.

This biopic chooses to accompany Bruce while he emerges as a rock 'n roll legend devoted to the common man's celebration of life's smaller moments that eventually lead to where he is going.

As much as I like this minimalist approach, I still yearn for more stage singing at which White is so adept-he should be nominated-- as Chalamet was last year. I could do less of Bruce's romance with Faye (Odessa Young)-if it's even real-and more of the sterling interaction with his friend/counsel Jon Landau (Jeremy Strong).

In this fine bio, Bruce best expresses the interiority of the film's perspective:

"I just want it to feel like I'm in the room by myself." Bruce.

"Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere" is a biopic about the life of musician Bruce Springsteen based on the 2023 book "Deliver Me From Nowhere" by Warren Zanes. Written and directed by Scott Cooper ("Crazy Heart", "Black Mass", "Hostiles") and starring Jeremy Allen White in the lead role, it offers a subtle, melancholic look at an important transitional period in the famous rock star's career.

In 1981, singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen (Jeremy Allen White) decides to retreat to his ranch in Colts Neck, New Jersey after feeling burned out from all of the media attention he received from his recent album "The River". While there, Bruce contemplates what kind of creative direction he will take for his follow-up release, eventually settling on a quieter, more stripped-back set of ballads with lyrics drawn loosely from his own traumatic childhood experiences. Recording the songs on a cassette tape from within his own bedroom, Bruce utilises minimal instrumentation and other outside sources to keep the music from sounding too polished, resulting in a ten track folk album he later titles "Nebraska". Due to Bruce's insistence on not releasing any singles, putting himself on the front cover, or touring to promote the album, his record label Columbia feels doubtful about Nebraska's commercial success, but Bruce's manager and close friend Jon Landau (Jeremy Strong) trusts his judgement and works hard to convince the Columbia executives to release the album in its current state.

Known by his honorific nickname "The Boss", Bruce Springsteen has been entertaining many listeners with his music for well over fifty years, an accomplishment few other artists are able to equal. Before he was able to completely sell out large stadiums with his famously boisterous, energetic live concerts, Bruce's initial success was mostly restricted to within his home country of the United States, in particular his native state of New Jersey. Though he did eventually hit international stardom with his 1984 album "Born in the U. S. A.", Bruce first experimented with a softer sounding folk record in "Nebraska", a huge risk that ended up paying off considerably in the long run. Chronicling Bruce's creation of the album and his personal background surrounding it, the film "Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere" shows the audience that channelling one's insecurities into something creative can often be one of the best forms of cathartic therapy available.

Appropriately reflecting what is a frequent subject matter in his music, we are first shown the life of a young Bruce Springsteen (Matthew Anthony Pellicano) with his middle-class upbringing throughout the late 1950s. Here, we watch as eight-year-old Bruce deals with the issues his parents are facing throughout their marriage, mostly stemming from the mental health problems of his father Douglas (Stephen Graham), who struggles to hold down a job to help keep a roof over their heads. Because of Douglas's raging insecurities, Bruce often finds himself overhearing his parents fighting loudly outside his room with little to drown out their shouting except plugging his ears and hoping they will stop at some point. Though Douglas clearly has many demons to conquer, we see that he nonetheless loves Bruce and tries (though often in vain) to build a positive relationship with his son, either by teaching him how to fight or taking him out to the movies. Little would young Bruce know that it is experiences like these that will prove pivotal in influencing him creatively later on in life.

Jumping forward to 1981, we see a now 32-year-old Bruce in the process of winding down after extensively touring to promote his fifth album "The River". Choosing to take some time away from the public eye, Bruce settles into his secluded New Jersey ranch, though his break is sabotaged due to his reemerging childhood memories hindering his capacity to think properly. However, Bruce soon realises that he can use his insecure thoughts as the creative backbone of his next album, composing new songs with lyrics that parallel some of the trauma he experienced growing up. In stark contrast to his previous work, Bruce chooses to do away with the usual loud rock n' roll production in favour of something that uses the bare minimum of instrumental input, often only ever featuring him singing over acoustic guitar and a harmonica.

What results from this is a relatively quiet folk album comprising of ten songs that each tell the story of middle-class people struggling to make it through tough times, many of which bear similarities to Bruce's own experiences with his family. As the film then shows, this method of Bruce using what was holding him back as an outlet for creativity quickly ends up being one of the most important decisions of his entire musical career, effectively setting him on the path towards what he would become widely known for later on. I enjoyed the way we get to see each moment of Bruce trying to overcome his personal troubles by attempting to make peace with his past, whether it's through his songwriting or by physically confronting those who instigated all of these issues to begin with. It helps brings out a sincere, human quality in a famous individual we would otherwise view as a seemingly perfect rockstar icon.

No stranger to making movies about flawed musicians, director Scott Cooper adopts a similar approach here towards the real life Bruce Springsteen as he did with fictional country singer Otis "Bad" Blake (Jeff Bridges) in 2009's "Crazy Heart". To accomplish this, Cooper often shows Bruce at odds with those around him over how he wants the album to turn out, disregarding any input that would detract from his vision. For instance, most of the people Bruce works alongside with during Nebraska's production believe it is a bad idea to release a folk record right after five previous albums of heavy rock songs. Naturally, Bruce insists he knows what he is doing, and continues running the risk of creating a record that will either make or break him as an artist.

Additionally, there are also key scenes where Cooper shows Bruce attempting to reconcile with his family, particularly with his father Douglas. Moments like these flash back and forth between Bruce as a kid and as an adult, showing how these interactions have greatly affected the direction he has chosen to take things with this album. For the most part, these scenes are handled respectfully, but much like the Nebraska album itself, the pacing is fairly slow and the usual sensationalism is kept to a minimum. Whether the viewer will see this as beneficial or detrimental to the film's entertainment value is dependent on their level of commitment to Bruce Springsteen, but as a moderate fan of the musician's work myself, it didn't really bother me all that much.

Capturing the legendary rocker's signature style at all times, Jeremy Allen White does a solid job at depicting Bruce Springsteen during one of the most vulnerable periods of his life. As anyone who has watched him on the TV series "The Bear", White's acting style is perfectly suited to someone like Springsteen, demonstrating his ability to both come alive on stage in front of an audience of adoring fans to quietly trying to overcome his deeply-rooted issues completely by himself. Like Timothée Chalamet did with Bob Dylan in "A Complete Unknown", White also did all of his own singing without the need for post-production overdubs and even played the harmonica himself as well. White's commitment to this role is admirable, and I would say it's one of his best film performances to date.

Narrowly preventing the film from being a one man show, Jeremy Strong also has a few memorable parts as Bruce Springsteen's manager Jon Landau, who also happens to be a close friend of his. Though most of his dialogue was lacking in places, Strong nonetheless was able to elevate his role above what could have been viewed as a brief footnote in Springsteen's history thanks to the scenes that show him never once giving up on his client. It is made clear that Jon understands Bruce's need for the album to turn out this way in order for him to start his healing process and continue moving forward as an artist. Even when Bruce is not around, Jon still finds the time to defend his artist's integrity to the record label, even if that means he too will face sharp criticism from others.

Although I don't exactly see the film winning him any new admirers, "Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere" still succeeds at finding ways to present to us an appropriately flawed image of an iconic musician like Bruce Springsteen. We all have our insecurities to overcome, and it is nice to be reminded that even The Boss himself grapples with his own personal demons, which in turn makes him a more relatable person to viewers from all walks of life. With that said, it is probably the longtime fans who will derive the most enjoyment out of a movie like this, especially ones who consider Nebraska to be his best work. As for everyone else, I recommend listening to that album first before checking this film out, because it will certainly help put things into the required perspective.

I rate it 7/10.

LIKES: The Setting The Visuals The Heart The Portrayal Of Depression The Creation Process At Times The Acting The Cinematography DISLIKES: The Pace The Mood Not As About The Songs As I Would Like Lots Of Plots That Feel Condensed To A Fault Depressing

Summary: As expected, this biopic accomplishes the task of bringing us back into history to feel immersed in the moment with incredible attention to detail in recreating the city in the '80s. The costume and props department has found locations, crafted fashion, and recreated studios to look like something from the past, giving you the authentic vibes of Springsteen working to make his songs come to life. I love such attention to detail, especially when the visuals just work to craft the emotions of the moment, which in this film is a key factor and focus of the director. Impressive cinematography finds the optimal presentation style to help make Bruce's struggles in songwriting a reality. I loved seeing each sequence carefully edited to use the background to sort of mimic his moods, finding an intricate use of light and filters to help almost show the transition in an indirect way. It all works in tandem to give that elevated feel, and I applaud them for such bold and creative means without the need for hi-tech CGI.

This Springsteen film is deeper than I imagined it would be, a portrayal of one man's inner mindset in finding the inspiration, drive, and perfection in his art, alongside the demons that accompany it. It's smart writing at times, adding that Hollywood sauce to spice things up and create memorable quotes that seem realistic, but not blunt. The creative scenes are my favorite, getting to hear the music belt out of the speakers, watching "Bruce" play his guitar as he belts out the classic lyrics with energy that is worthy of mimicking the boss. These moments hold the energy I love in a musical biography, and I wanted more of these sequences to the same degree I've enjoyed in other biopics. Yet, this movie chooses to put the focus on the character development, and much of the time is spent showing Bruce's depression, which he was known to have. I'll grant them more nods to their realistic portrayal of the disorder, showing these gradual transformations in behavior and mannerisms to which I found accurate and respectful. There is heart and soul to this film, and seeing such a powerful portrayal of the pressure he battled is something truly admirable when a film accomplishes this manner. Though I have to acknowledge the acting prowess of the cast, especially White's performance. The Bear actor has moved from the kitchen into the studio, and much like the drama, he has brought his A-game to portraying the music icon. His methods are stunning, and I loved watching him unleash the various emotions of the Boss to varying degrees, whether it was belting "Born In The USA" or trying to work himself up to find that missing sound, and more. The whole cast is wonderful, and with their help, take this legacy to new heights that I think many will appreciate when looking into the dramatic stories of the gifted artists we have come to admire.

Such artistic vision is welcome in terms of that Oscar-worthy atmosphere, but I think it comes at a cost. This biopic did not feel quite as widespread or music-oriented, at least in giving my ears an audio shower from the legendary tracks. As mentioned, we have a few covers and some of his works that got the royal treatment, but aside from that, the movie focused more on the artist. While this is fine to an extent, I would have liked to have some more of his actual creation and performance of the songs, similar to the styles of Rocket Man and Bohemian Rhapsody. Instead, the focus is on the mental state, taxation, and life changes, which establishes a darker mood for this film. That mood weighed heavily on me, and though tasteful and realistic, it sort of sucked my energy away and left me enjoying the film less than I had desired. This affected the pace for me, sometimes dilating ten minutes to three times the amount, and I began to feel bored as I began to drown further into the darker mindset of Bruce. And even worse, there were lots of things they seemed to address, ranging from sources of trauma, finding relief, searching for inspiration, and more. While fascinating at times, I felt this was another example of trying to condense too many things into a shorter time period, leaving many of these contesting subplots feeling short, unfinished, skirted, and summarized to a fault. I'd just be getting into one story when all of a sudden it dove to another tale, which would then cascade to another. Maybe it was factual, or maybe it was trying to manage the chaos of the time, but with the foreboding depression, these stories just felt more of a distraction when I wanted to focus on a few of the stories and maximize these tales to not feel so foreboding. If the director wanted the audience to feel this way, he accomplished it, but as an entertaining spectacle, I don't think it accomplished that element.

The VERDICT: Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is a spectacle worthy of Oscar attention. One of the more realistic biopics, this film has recreated the decade with stunning details, incorporating a lot of techniques, styles, and locations to bring us back into the heart of his world. Such direction deserves a nod to acknowledging Springsteen's challenging times in a way that feels more tasteful than other modalities choose to pursue. And the acting is stunning, with the lead once again amazing me with his methods of bringing such elaborate, difficult roles to life and with such talent and focus. Throw in one scene that hit my expectations on seeing a Springsteen performance pulled from the past with Hollywood's splendor, and I can't help but sing praise for these moments. Yet, the film's focus is not for audience members like me who seek a balance of music, creative fun, and drama. Instead, its storytelling is all about Bruce's hardships, a personification of his mindset brilliantly brought to life to which I nod for talent. But such foreboding depression is hard to sit through, the pace feels off as subplots fight for screentime, and there is little light to help relieve that sadness. This made the movie drag for me, and I think that might be the case for others wanting a little more show and a little less of the darker facets of The Boss's approach. When I factor all this in, I think this movie has the composure to be theater-worthy for those wanting that realistic drama piece. But for many, sticking to watching at home, where pausing can provide the breaks you need from the depression. For my scores, I give it: Dramatic/biography/Music: 7.0 Movie Overall: 6.0.

Beautiful performances especially between Stephen Graham and Jeremy Allan White.

A really sensitive look at mental health struggles in a rich rock star vs a working class dad who doesn't have access to the same resources. I had been expecting a 'boy breaking out of an abusive childhood' story so to have his dad portrayed so empathetically made this much more interesting than your usual music biopic.

Compared to something like A Complete Unknown which didn't seem to have anything interesting to say about its protagonist, this was a really interesting insight into life after being thrust into stardom.

Greetings again from the darkness (on the edge of town). My connection to Bruce Springsteen's music dates back more than 50 years and includes hitchhiking (from San Antonio) to a gig at the Armadillo World Headquarters in Austin. As much as I loved the early tunes from his first two albums, it was the 1975 release of the "Born to Run" album that spoke to me on a mystical level. His storytelling and anthems on that instant classic, as well as the next two albums, "Darkness on the Edge of Town" and "The River", had a way of drawing us in for a pure escape. By 1981, Springsteen's albums were huge and his live performances were legendary and exhilarating. It's the time period just after that serves as the basis for this film from writer-director Scott Cooper, based on the 2023 book, "Deliver Me From Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska" by Warren Zanes.

A black & white opening takes us to Bruce's childhood (he's played by newcomer Matthew Anthony Pellican Jr) where we get a feel for his rocky home life with mom Adele (Gaby Hoffman, C'MON C'MON, 2021) and on-the-verge of violence dad "Dutch" (a terrific Stephen Graham, "Adolescence"). Cooper then cuts to the closing night of the 1981 tour in Cincinnati, where Jeremy Allen White ("Shameless") as Bruce belts out "Born to Run" with the E Street Band (decent lookalikes). At this point, I found myself a bit deflated. It all felt too cliché and the song just wasn't up to the standard I'd hoped. Fortunately, things were about to get much more interesting with a deep dive into the birth of "Nebraska".

Bruce was 31 years old and on the verge of superstardom after his first true hit, "Hungry Heart" (which fortunately is mentioned but never heard). The record company is itching for the next round of hits, while Bruce is clearly dealing with some mixed emotions. His rented house in Colts Neck, New Jersey affords him the solitude he needs to obsess over Terrence Malick's BADLANDS (1973) with Martin Sheen as a psychotic killer based on real life killer Charles Starkweather (the last name plays an interesting part of Springsteen trivia). Bruce fans know what happens next - in the sanctity of the home's bedroom, and with the help of guitar tech Mike Batlan (Paul Walter Hauser, RICHARD JEWELL, 2019), he records the songs for the "Nebraska" album using low-tech equipment. His insistence on releasing the album in raw form sends the record company into a tizzy. Bruce also works in a few jam sessions at the infamous club, The Stone Pony, where we see him cut through Little Richard's "Lucille" and John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom".

It's here where the deep friendship between Bruce and his agent, Jon Landau (a wonderful Jeremy Strong, THE APPRENTICE, 2004) becomes the heart of the film. Nope, it's not the music that makes this story work ... it's the support of Landau for his friend, whom he also recognizes as a genius. During this dark emotional time, Bruce somehow begins a romance with Faye (Odessa Young, MOTHERING SUNDAY, 2021), a local single mom - who is also an amalgam of women in Bruce's life at the time. This contributes to the complexities of Bruce's mental state during this time, and helps us (and him) understand why this particular music is so necessary for him.

"I have seen rock & roll's future and his name is Bruce Springsteen". That's a quote from a 1974 concert review by music writer Jon Landau. Yes, the same man who became Springsteen's long-time manager and close friend. But this movie isn't about Bruce Springsteen the rock icon. It's a meditative and exploratory peek at a soulful artist during a dark and confusing time. He is sliced open to reveal someone still dealing with a less-than-joyous childhood while balancing the pressure of becoming an international sensation. This was the calm before the storm of "Born in the U. S. A." ... only it wasn't anything near calm for Bruce. He was in pain - a true tortured soul working through the emotions of finding himself. It's quite fascinating to watch, though most assuredly, a departure from the mainstream music biopics we have seen over the past few years.

Scott Cooper's film, CRAZY HEART (2009) won Jeff Bridges an Oscar, and proved the director had a feel for angst in musicians. Warren Zanes wrote the book this film is adapted from, and as guitarist for the Del Fuegos and Tom Petty biographer, Zanes absolutely understands this life. It's because of these two gentlemen and superb performance in Acts 2 and 3 by Jeremy Allen White and Jeremy Strong that this film never wallows in melodrama, despite the lead character suffering with depression and anxiety. While we hear cuts from the Nebraska album, Springsteen fans should know this is not a concert film. The music is utilized precisely and purposefully, but the music does not drive this film. The exception might be White's rendition of "Born in the U. S. A." while in the studio. That's the one time audience members might be tempted to yell: "BRRUUUUUCE!" Opens wide on October 24, 2025.