The Soloist (Blu-ray)
Filed Under: Blu-ray, Reviews | Article Tags : Blu-ray review
By: The Dweeb
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Sometimes, life can make a great movie, and its even better when the studio executives don’t mess with it. The Soloist is one of those heartwarming films, providing a window into peoples lives that have such a compelling story to tell. Yes one could say this is just Oscar bait for Jamie Foxx or Robert Downey Jr., I couldn’t help but think about Tropic Thunder’s spoof of this type of movie with the Simple Jack film (and the irony of course is that Downey is also in this film). As the movie goes on, I was starting to half expect the gratuitous happy ending where all of society’s problems with homeless are suddenly cured and its all bunnies and sunshine. Far from it, the film remains deeply rooted in reality, and things just go on as they are. Certainly, the film sends a message about the problem with homelessness, but never offers any solutions. There is no compelling reason to make the audience stand up after the lights come on and want to do something about it. There are some links on the official web site, but I had to actively seek this information. How about a link in the credits eh? Its just another form of entertainment for the masses, I would hope the studio or the producers will take the profits from this film and donate it to charity because its the right thing to do. Anything else would seem very exploitive, and so far I have not seen anything to date about this.
The Soloist is based on LA Time Columnist Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) encounters and subsequently attempts to help a homeless man, Nathaniel Ayers (Jamie Foxx) who is a gifted Juliard level classical musician. It is the story of an unlikely relationship between a man who writes for a living and someone who suffers from schizophrenia, and also an examination of how Nathaniel can go from the concert halls of Julliard to the streets of L.A. playing on a broken violin. Although they are both the headliners, clearly this is Jamie Foxx’s moment to shine on screen. Wow, he really blew me away with his interpretation of Nathaniel Ayers, he completely embodies the role. Wracked in the throes of his inner voices that constantly haunt him, the only shred of his mental state left is his passion for music. They can take everything away from him, but the sound still sounds beautiful on the streets and tunnels of L.A. Music is his only escape from the hard realities of street life.
As for Downey, we’ve seen this character before. He played another real life investigative reporter in the Zodiac movie, and I felt he brought more to the table in that film then compared to this one. He’s essentially playing himself here, although since the real life Steve Lopez is fairly normal, except in his zeal to lift Ayers out from the depths, you can’t do much else with the character. There are a few glimpses into the life of this man, but we don’t find out enough. He is divorced? Separated? It wasn’t clear to me, and the entire opening of the film with his bike accident, wasn’t sure how that fit in to the main story, as much time had passed from that point to meeting Ayers. Was this some sort of life changing event? Looks damn painful though.
I suppose the third main character in the film is of course the music. Ayers loves his classical composers, from Beethoven to Mozart. The movie’s soundtrack is fantastic, and some of the pieces certainly will tug at the heart strings more so than usual. Of course on this Blu-ray edition it sounds even more crisp and clear. If anything, you will walk away with some appreciation for classical music and how it can move the emotions. As Ayers mother says in a flashback sequence, Nathaniel’s music is the voice from God.
The Blu-ray for The Soloist when one compares it to a standard DVD is about the same as far as content goes. This release seems like it was designed for the rental market, the in movie features common on many films are just not there except for a commentary track. Obviously the sound and picture are great but at this price point I would expect more than what’s on here. In the featurettes we finally get to meet the real people, and there are some extensive pieces on how this film came to be and how it was made. Almost as an aside, there is a short piece highlighting the organizations who are trying to help the homeless in LA. Certainly its a major problem, but again there is not much in terms of info on how to help.
The Soloist is certainly a solid film, I was not disappointed. I’m guessing the Academy may be looking in Jamie Foxx’s direction next year for this one.
Reviewer’s Opinion: RENT IT!!
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