Blue Moon

In filmdom, sometimes you need a break from what's popular. I have no beef with the superhero pictures, and in fact believe Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is a stroke of genius. People much younger than me swear by Marvel movies, and it shows at the boxoffice. That said, just as FM Radio played "Stairway to Heaven" into oblivion, I believe the cartoon characters we see on the silver screen are past their prime. Yes, there will be more Batman films, and I'm looking forward to Robert Pattinson acting in another gem as the Caped Crusader. But if you watched the Oscars this year, you'll notice the omission of nominees donned in spandex for their roles. One such performance was Ethan Hawke portraying lyricist Lorenz Hart in Blue Moon. Although Hawke didn't win Best Actor, he did an incredible job in a crowded field of blue-chip actors.  

I've been a big fan of The Great American Songbook since I was a child. Whether it was The Beatles covering "Till There Was You" on With The Beatles, or Cass Elliot singing "Dream a Little Dream of Me" on her first solo effort after the breakup of The Mamas & The Papas. Lest not forget all of those Frank Sinatra records in the 1960's. Old Blue Eyes permeated our household for a stretch. In the 1990's, a group of musicians featuring James White, Adele Bertei, Alex Chilton and Angel Torsen released a CD called Medium Cool - Imagination. I listened to it relentlessly. Packed with Jazz standards such as "That Old Feeling" and "How Long Has This Been Going On", it gave me a break from the Grunge sound that was so popular back then. I listened to both.

Lorenz Hart is the epitome of songwriters during Jazz's Golden Age. Hart, along with his composer and partner Richard Rodgers created some of the most memorable songs during the Swing Era. For over two decades they ruled the roost. Over 500 tunes and 28 musical theater productions are prominent on their collective résumé. "The Lady is a Tramp", "My Funny Valentine", and "Blue Moon" are some of their most famous songs. Many of these songs are familiar to Baby Boomers from being covered by famous artists in the 1950's and 1960's such as Frank Sinatra and Chet Baker. In 1961 The Marcels did a Doo-Wop rendition of "Blue Moon" and put it on the map for a new generation of listeners. Fast-forward to 2025 and filmmaker Richard Linklater attempts to catch lightning in a bottle again cinematically, but comes up short in the feature film Blue Moon. 

Films or movies are also called moving pictures for a reason. You're supposed to show movement. Blue Moon in its basic form is a teleplay. It takes place in three settings in the famous Manhattan Theater District restaurant Sardi's. In the bar, in the large foyer and in the coat check room. This is not to say you can't have a successful play translate into a successful movie. Glengarry Glen Ross and Twelve Angry Men come to mind. Both excellent movies, with incredible ensemble casts. Blue Moon is primarily a one-man show, with an almost continuous monologue by Hawke playing Hart. Sure, there are interactions with the bartender played by Bobby Cannavale, and also Hart's unrequited love interest played by Margaret Qualley, but it's just not enough to carry the film. It is written by Robert Kaplow who was nominated for Best Original Screenplay at the Oscars, and although he did an outstanding job, the subject matter is art for art's sake. You have to be well versed in literature or the theater to pick up on all the subtleties. It would have been better to be seen live on a stage.

Ethan Hawke and Richard Linklater have partnered as actor and director numerous times and it shows. The "Before" trilogy with Julie Delpy as Hawke's romantic partner are probably the most renown of the collaborations. I haven't watched them. I really enjoyed Boyhood and most notably Dazed and Confused because it depicts high school in 1976 like you were there. And I was there. It's realistic and I could identify with it. But Linklater draws out the best in Hawke. Blue Moon is no exception. It must have been difficult for Hawke to get into character being almost six feet tall while Lorenz Hart was short in stature at only five feet. In most of the scenes, Hawke sits at the bar, and for the standing sequences, he's filmed from the waist up.

The entire production is about the opening night for Oklahoma!, and the smashing success Richard Rodgers experiences with his new collaborator Oscar Hammerstein. It's a sad moment for Lorenz Hart and he compensates by smoking stogies and drinking shots of bourbon. What we discover throughout the movie is that this is Hart's M.O. for most of his professional life. This was common for the day, especially during wartime. Hard smoking and hard drinking. Unfortunately, it caught up to him. Although Lorenz Hart had a USPS commemorative stamp dedicated to him in 1999, and now is enshrined in a feature length film, he died very young at 48 years old. A few months after Blue Moon took place, Lorenz Hart passed away from complications of pneumonia and alcoholism. Give my regards to Broadway.