Reviews

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  ★★★★ review by Sam Van Hallgren on Letterboxd

  Satisfying as a critique of biopics while still being a satisfying biopic itself. In fact it's so good at getting at the self destructive heart of not just addiction but of a certain kind of artistic temperament that by the end it becomes almost mythic.  

  But the movie avoids making Baker out to be mythic himself. It helps that Baker's reputation is of a brilliant flash in the pan who let drugs destroy him. He doesn't have the same heroic baggage as many biopic subjects. While the movie admires Baker, it never reveres him. And it has the humility to admit that in the end there is no way to fully understand him (or anyone for that matter). It also manages to pull off the rare feat of showing the work it takes to be an artist as well as making us understand the standard he set for himself and what it sounds like when he attains it. And finally, the movie is wise in its implication that redemption stories can have victims. Or that tragedies can contain redemption. Life is complicated.

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  ★★★★ review by Jared on Letterboxd

  Simultaneously functioning as a biting critique of standard fare biopics and a pretty insightful one itself, Born to Be Blue is yet another exploration into the complex relationship between art and abuse of any kind. In Chet Baker's case, that abuse is derived from heroine, a catalyst for Baker's late-career fall and subsequent rise. Born to Be Blue charts that journey, cleverly playing with the fabric of biopics and twisting it along the way. Baker is humanized, an almost entirely flawed figure that is very noticeably selfish and indifferent. It doesn't pretend to know him, to fully comprehend the complexities behind his addiction, why he was so compelled to take the dive time and time again. But that's the strength of the film, it's uncanny ability to explore the self-destructive heart of addiction, but at the same time rejoicing in the mythic connection between suffering and genius. That's the thing isn't it? At the end of the film, it cleverly states that Baker made some of his best music in the height of his addiction. As music fans, we treasure these years of tortured artistic creation, in effect appreciating the toll the abuse took on the artist. But what about Baker's girlfriend? His parents? Or for many artists, their kids? Do they rejoice in the suffering that produced great art? This is the inescapable and often ignored fact, artists are two people at once. A human being and a myth, sometimes it's easier not to differentiate.

  #6 in my Next 15 Watches
  
  2016 Films Ranked

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  ★★★★ review by Brendan Michaels on Letterboxd

  7/10
  
  I love Jazz so this movie was basically for me. I don't know much about Chet Baker and I don't think this was a great way to know who the real Chet Baker was but damn does it make me even more interested in learning more about him.

  Born to be Blue has been described as an anti-biopic. It's a reimagining of Baker's comeback in the 1960s and his struggle with trying to get his career back on track after getting his teeth punched out. 

  Ethan Hawke does a terrific job as Baker. Giving a great grasp on Baker's persona and making it his own and not feeling like a bad impression. Some problems I have with biopics is that the actor playing the real person seems like they are doing an impression rather than trying to be that person (I.E. Chadwick Boseman as James Brown). 

  But what really sticks out to me for the film is the opening. The film opens with one of the best opening shots in a film this year. It foreshadows the oncoming slaught of spiders in his life. A representation of a web of addiction he will throw himself into. He can't help but keep coming to this web even though he knows it will bring him sadness. But as the title suggests Chet was Born to be Blue.

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  ★★★★ review by Dawson Joyce on Letterboxd

  Ethan Hawke delivers one of his best performances in a long time as music legend Chet Baker in Born to Be Blue, a strong effort from writer/director Robert Budreau that's surprisingly and refreshingly more unique than most biopics.

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  ★★★½ review by Xplodera on Letterboxd

  “Who do you like better, me or Miles Davis?”

  To be completely fair, I guess I should start by saying that I’m an enormous fan of Miles Davis and I think most of his albums are great. However, with slightly more lo-fi style and the added element of his vocals, Chet Baker is surely a close second in terms of the jazz-trumpets, fully amazing in his own way. With a touching life-story worth to be told, this biopic kind of sweeps away the rug under your feet early on by attempting a meta-approach. On the one hand, this floating, hazy style fits Baker’s music (which is at its best when it’s just floating away) but much of it feels like a poor attempt at hiding an otherwise clear biopic-narrative. Ethan Hawke has more than an uncanny resemblance to Baker, transcending the visual similarities with an extremely dedicated performance ranking amongst his best. Ultimately, Kind of Blue is somewhat stuck between the traditional narrative and dreamy experimentation, creating a nice portrait of Baker’s life but not without an ounce of wasted potential.

  2015

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