Sometimes a film can be powered to greatness (or respectability) by a performance. Case in point, "Training Day". Such a film is "Crazy Heart", whose central performance by Jeff Bridges makes this film work well beyond its modest ambition. Other performances compliment Bridges turn as Bad Blake but they are window dressing. Maggie Gylenhaal is fine but decidedly miscast as Bridges love interest. She is simply to young and pretty to be truthful within the context of the story. But, again the performance is fine. Colin Farrell is way too, well, Colin Farrell to buy as a young country singer, but if that's actually him singing he really has a pretty good country/pop voice. Those are quibbles because it's all about Bridges. Tough and truthful, he manifests the character in subtle strokes, saturating Bad Blake in honesty and booze. You can hear the miles in his voice. He should win the Oscar. He has my vote in the SAG awards.
A word about the music. If you make a movie about a country singer/song writer, you better make sure the song score doesn't sink your movie (see post of "Nine"). They hired T-Bone Burnett. Oscar number two. (with a stipulation, since the music branch of the Academy is almost as looney as the documentarians) "Crazy Heart" is one of the best of the year.
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