Born to Be Blue

I don't think this is a great film, not by a long shot. That may sound critical, but it's how I feel. I think it sidesteps many more interesting directions it could have gone in and instead chooses the safer, more predictable route a lot of the time. More than anything though, it serves as a vehicle for Ethan Hawke. He's always been a very solid, very reliable actor, but he doesn't really get many meaty dramatic roles like this. He does wonders with the role and really makes the lead character as likable as he could be, taking into account the circumstances. Definitely a solid watch and definitely a film for Ethan Hawke fans who wish he would get more parts like this. Some really great music as well.

The overall production was stellar.

Ethan Hawke gives a honest performance that showcase his most endearing qualities as a fine thespian. His portrait of Chet Baker is impressive.

Hawke and Cameron Ejogo who played his girlfriend in the film had a lot of chemistry between the two of them, which is good because the movie centers on the both of them greatly. I herd her role is more of a mixture of many women Chet seem to be able to pull down, which only makes her performance more important, as she goes from being a coworker in a movie about his life to his love interest, the mother of his child, and most importantly the muse the keeps him going and inspires him to kick his drug habit in order to get better and play better.

The imagery of the film was great, it was not too colorful but gave a bright California vibe known in 1960s movies.

And it was a well told story about about drug addiction. It was not one of these things where you should feel super sad for the person cause he can't stay off the stuff. It was a honest look about an insure man who could not function properly without heroin in his system.

Truly a masterpiece in cinema when you can tell a fantastic and interesting story in a motion picture that does not to use Hollywood clichés in it. I loved it.

Jazz trumpeter Chet Baker (Ethan Hawke) gains early fame for his West Coast Swing. Miles Davis dismisses him as White Men's Hope. Drug addiction breaks up his marriage to Elaine (Carmen Ejogo). Years later, he is struggling. He meets actress Jane (Carmen Ejogo) who is playing Elaine in his movie. His drug dealer smashes his face for not paying. He loses the movie and his ability to play. Even his producer friend Dick Bock (Callum Keith Rennie) has had enough. With Jane's help, he lives in a van and slowly regains his trumpet playing.

The flow is idiosyncratic like jazz. I also would like more of his early drug addiction downfall. There are some good character work from Ethan Hawke. There isn't a overriding drama but it has good some personal moments. This is solid work from Hawke but the movie is a bit slow as a whole.

This movie is a fictional reconstruction of a short period in the life of Baker, during the 60s. Starting with Chet in an Italian jail in 1966, the story quickly moves to New York, where Chet is invited to play himself in a documentary about his life. Then follows one of the most amazing scenes I ever saw.

Opening as a black & white flashback, we see a young Chet in 1954, playing very cool in Birdland, with Miles Davis and Dizzie Gillespie in the audience. In the backstage we see what should be Baker's initiation to heroin, but we discover that the scene is actually part of the documentary.

Brilliant film-making is made of such scenes conveying all the magic of cinema.

The story continues with Chet trying to rebuild his "career" with a help of a female artist, unfortunate enough to be attracted by his relatively good looks and melancholic charm. The pair moves from New York to California, where Chet swear to be clean and ready to play some serious jazz.

Unfortunately, Chet was the master of all junkies, unreliable, selfish and self-destructive. His girlfriend wisely dumps him and off he goes to enjoy the company of heroin until the day he died.

I am not a jazz fan and never heard any of the music Baker played, so I cannot comment about the remarks about the music not being good enough or even detrimental to the movie. For me it was a very well written and executed film, with a solid plot and good performances.

PS: as far as "blackening the reputation" of Baker... I never understood why junkie musicians should be idolized. The history of contemporary music is paved with unpleasant, self-destructive characters who had exceptional musical skills. Egotism does not make them any less talented, but certainly does not add to their charm.

If you want to see what years of heroin addiction do to the body, just check the photos of Chet from his early 20s until the end of his life. The crevasses on his face mirrors the destruction of his internal organs....

Born to be Blue follows famed jazz musician Chet Baker as he struggles with both losing and attempting to regain his ability to play the trumpet, as well as quitting his addiction to heroin.

Ethan Hawke plays Chet Baker, and I was a little unsure as to what I'd think. I haven't been terribly impressed by Hawke, despite liking him in his movies. He hasn't blown me away with anything. That is, until this movie. He's pretty great. He fits the character perfectly as this rough-around-the-edges but still used to the wealthy lifestyle which he has and a little naive because of it kind of guy. One would think that the higher tone of voice he uses for this role might be annoying, but it really isn't. Plus he just looks the part. He was perfect in every way for this film and his character.

This is a movie about a famous jazz musician, so we can assume that the soundtrack will be good. And it certainly is. Not much to say there, but it's great. The fact that Hawke even sang all of it is even more impressive on his part. He's got a great voice for the part too, and I'll definitely be listening to this soundtrack in the future.

The flashback sequences were pretty cool. Normally filters placed over a scene bother me, but in this case it worked really well. That, and the fact that it isn't the whole movie placed under a filter. Plus, the filter is just really cool. It suits the movie with it's black and white look with a tint of blue. It looks like a flashback, but it has this dark liveliness to it, similarly to how Baker's life was portrayed. Furthermore, the movie decides to use the same actress as his lover for both the flashbacks and the present for reasons that I won't spoil. But trust me, it was a interesting decision and it worked.

And the climax, or more just the whole last twenty or so minutes, are amazing. They are easily the best part of the movie. There's an excellent scene right before the climax itself involving a decision Baker has to make, and it's so good. Of course, Hawke continues to tell us how great he is in this role. Then the climax itself starts and it's great. And as it comes to a close it wraps itself up in a way that we don't see often. It's a realistic, unconventional way of doing it that I figure is the truth. As far as biographies go, we don't see a lot of them where the ending isn't all good and happy. Born to be Blue is one of those rare movies that has the balls to tell an honest story with an honest ending, and I loved it. Right down to how certain small elements were handled were just on point.

If I can find any real error in this movie its the fact that the general plot of some skilled person hitting rock bottom and working their way back up has been used many times. However, the presentation is all that really matters in a case like this, and I thought it was pretty great. On top of that the movie is, despite being only 97 minutes long a little slow. Maybe I expected it to fly by because of how much shorter it is than some other movies, but I thought it dragged just a little from time to time.

Overall Born to be Blue is pretty fantastic. The acting, specifically from Ethan Hawke is great, the music is great, the climax is fantastic, and it all around nailed it's presentation of an otherwise unoriginal idea. This is one of the best movies of the year and I would definitely recommend checking it out.