Richard Linklater and Ethan Hawke are back once again, this time going back in time to the opening night of Oklahoma. Lorenzo Hart, played incredibly by Ethan Hawke, is a struggling alcoholic. Where he is talented with music, he destroys with his drinking. His musical partner Richard Rogers, played by Andrew Scott, is relishing his success of Oklahoma, which is the first time Hart and Rogers have not worked together, and it is a roaring success. Placing Hart in a rather poor place for a singular night.
Linklater is no stranger to hangout movies or lengthy dialogue with characters talking about nothing and everything. He does it better than anyone here. However, here it feels different. Neither Linklater nor Hawke is the man they were when they both made Before Sunrise; they are older, and they know it. Not only do they know it, but they also accept it. There is something about this chamber piece that feels so suffocating; it feels as if somebody’s life has already passed them by, and they constantly have to remind people, “Remember when I did this, when I mattered”
This is a film both of them were born to make. It never defends Harte; it never tries to portray him as this tortured artist or mock him, as the film could easily do, because he is quite flawed. It never does. It acknowledges that this man had flaws; he had his demons, but he was talented and respected, and he was liked. Even after all this, there is something so tragic about the film, despite its literal chamber piece. No action whatsoever. There is a blanket of tragedy that surrounds the film.
A film like this feels as if it is a relic of a forgotten time. Is it overindulgent, full of itself? It’s all those things, and yet it works. The screenplay by Robert Kaplow is incredible. It is always an achievement to set a film in a single location for nearly two hours and ask audiences to listen to a single person. No one could play this part other than Hawke. There is an arrogance and bravado he brings along with a sadness. It feels like an extension of Linklater and Hawke’s Before Trilogy as it just says here is a conversation, you can listen or leave. If you listen, you’ll walk away feeling something.
Blue Moon feels special as a film, its narrative, its main character, all of it. The film had ample opportunity to make fun of Harte, who was this short, opinionated guy who had failed marriages and was pining over a girl who did not want him. He is a drunk and has mental health issues. It never laughs at him, and it never perceives him as a victim, as most cliche musical biopics follow the monotonic rollercoaster of the highest highs to the lowest lows. Blue Moon never rises with monotony; it sits at the bar and stays there. Telling you stories of a golden age that might be long gone or trying to rise from the ashes of Harte’s own destructive personality.
Easily, this is Linklater’s most mature piece Before Midnight is a close second. However, the fact that it never portrays anyone as the sleaziest executive or the meanest drinker. The characters here are flawed but human, and some of you are not given a straight answer of how they actually are, because it is the opening night of a new musical, and there is press everywhere. Beautiful women, an excess of handshakes and “thank-yous” filling the room. Everyone is wearing a mask, now at times the mask slips for Harte and Rogers. You are given only a window into their relationship for a handful of moments. Which makes Harte kind of an unreliable narrator for the most part, which makes it all so fascinating.
Overall, Linklater and Hawke have quite a good chance for the Oscar race this year. Hawke undoubtedly gives his best performance of his career, Linklater throws his hat in the ring, also giving one of the best films of his career. Now anyone can see the arguments will be thrown at this film “nothing happens” “It is pretentious” “The whole film is just a play” Simply put this movie is not for them and I’d argue they should stay away from most of Linklaters filmography cause he is one of the few that manages to make conversations for an hour and forty minutes seem incredibly cinematic and further proof that you do not a hundred million dollars and seventy locations to tell something interesting. Sometimes all you need is an engrossing conversation. To use the only phrase that truly fits for me personally — it’s peak in every sense that matters
Thomas Burke is in his final year of media production. He has produced, written, and directed a handful of short films, including “The Painter” and “Yearbook”. Qualifying in a few small festivals. He enjoys indie films and foreign cinema. He follows cinema in his life, constantly watching movies, going to festivals and seeing what new voices are emerging.
