Starring: Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey Jr., Catherine Keener
Director: Joe Wright (Atonement, Pride & Prejudice)
Running Time: 1 hr 56 min
Release Date: April 24, 2009
Budget: $60 million
Critics’ Thumbs Up: 59 %
“A triumphant movie about failure.” Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com
“…exude an off-putting sense of self-importance…” Todd McCarthy, Variety
Reminiscent of I Am Sam and Rain Man, The Soloist is a sorrowful and moving account of the real-life friendship between a schizophrenic but gifted musician (Foxx) who went from Julliard to homelessness, and the equally broken Los Angeles Times columnist (Downey) who wrote about him. While the narrative occasionally drags, it unfolds naturally and Foxx and the always great Downey avoid schmaltz with their absorbing portrayals of realistic people in a very real friendship with struggles and frustrations. Best of all, Wright vicariously depicts the characters’ emotional and mental states through his vibrant direction and soaring shots from a camera that moves as fast as the columnist’s observing eyes.
