Samuel Love“I saw her standing on her front lawn / Just a-twirling her baton / Me and her went for a ride, sir / And ten innocent people died.” So begins Nebraska, Bruce Springsteen’s sixth album released in 1982. A bold, daring and deeply personal work, Springsteen recorded the haunting songs unaccompanied on a four-track recorder in his bedroom – a stark contrast to his previous smash-hit album The River, his attempt to make a record that captured the E Street Band‘s powerful live sound. The story of Nebraska is just as fascinating as the songs themselves, and is captured wonderfully in Warren Zanes’ essential book Deliver Me from Nowhere which acts as the basis for a new big-screen snapshot of this crucial period in The Boss’ career.
Directed by Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart), Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is about as far as you can get from celebratory jukebox music biopics like Rocketman and Bohemian Rhapsody – this is an understated and poignant piece of work that shines the light on a dark, tortured period in Springsteen’s life and the creativity that blossomed during it. Those looking for a bombastic rock n’ roll epic similar to Springsteen’s lengthy anthem-filled arena shows will be disappointed, as Deliver Me from Nowhere spends the majority of its runtime quietly studying Springsteen’s depression, self-doubt and the ghosts of his past.
It is hard, however, to know exactly who Deliver Me from Nowhere is for. This is a slow and hushed look at an album that non-fans probably aren’t even familiar with, and therefore may not connect with the story of its inception and recording. So, logic would say that this is a film for the Boss’ longtime followers – but the simplicity in its storytelling and lack of any particularly revelatory insight might leave them feeling a little short-changed, too. It’s no surprise, then, that audiences are generally not responding with unanimous praise.
While not quite another Dewey Cox clone like that painfully bland A Complete Unknown, there are very few surprises in Deliver Me from Nowhere’s form or content. All the usual clichés are certainly present, too. A sequence in which a record executive (David Krumholtz) responds negatively to the Nebraska album veers close to parody, in the usual way that these biopics always have an antagonistic exec. suggesting a musician or album will never amount to anything when we, the audience, are watching a celebratory film about the subject many years down the line. Black and white flashbacks of Springsteen’s childhood also come dangerously close to “Dewey Cox has to think about his entire life before he plays”.
Like many other music biopics, a lot of the film feels more like an awards season wannabe – and the film certainly stands a chance in that circuit. Jeremy Allen White’s performance as The Boss is phenomenal, masterfully capturing the voice, energy and style of the beloved musician in the film’s brief performance sequences. But this is far more than impersonation, with Springsteen’s heart and soul fully embodied by White in the film’s more moving, understated moments with incredible nuance and vulnerability. Special mention should also go to Jeremy Strong who delivers another magnificent supporting turn as Springsteen’s manager Jon Landau, and to the wonderful direction from Cooper. There’s no denying that this is a beautifully shot and performed film, and it’s refreshing to see a music biopic that doesn’t take the easy route and play out like a Greatest Hits compilation.
But there’s certainly something missing. It’s certainly no coincidence that a 4-disc expanded version of the Nebraska album was dropped on the same day as this film – parts of it do feel like an extended advertisement for the record. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as Nebraska is a magnificent album that will certainly find many more fans yet, and probably continue to change lives. But when your biopic starts to feel like a puff-piece ad, it’s hard not to feel like a bit of a mug.
On the whole, though, Deliver Me from Nowhere is one of the better music biopics of recent years. Shining the spotlight on one of the more personal and understated albums in the Springsteen story is a bold choice, and makes for a more interesting film. Performances are wonderful across the board, and it goes without saying that the soundtrack is impeccable. But an unclear target audience leaves Deliver Me from Nowhere in an awkward purgatory between too basic for fans and too niche for newcomers, while the film doesn’t feel particularly revelatory in content or revolutionary in form. But as it all looks, sounds, and is performed as well as it is, it’s hard to get too bogged down in what’s missing.
SPRINGSTEEN: DELIVER ME FROM NOWHERE is in cinemas now
