Shadows on the Wall | Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere

dir-scr Scott Cooper
prd Scott Cooper, Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Eric Robinson, Scott Stuber
with Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter Hauser, Stephen Graham, Odessa Young, David Krumholtz, Gaby Hoffmann, Matthew Pellicano Jr, Harrison Sloan Gilbertson, Grace Gummer, Marc Maron, Jayne Houdyshell
release US/UK 24.Oct.25
25/US 20th Century 1h59

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Covering a brief period in Bruce Springsteen's life, this isn't so much a biopic as a snapshot of a pivotal moment. Filmmaker Scott Cooper is a gifted storyteller, so even if this feels rather "authorised", it takes the audience on an involving journey. And Jeremy Allen White throws his voice and body fully into the role, finding soul in dramatic scenes and soaring in the musical performances.

After hitting the big time in 1981, Bruce (White) begins thinking about what he will do next. Record label exec Al (Krumholtz) wants more of the same. Uninterested in deliberately writing hit singles, Bruce opts to make a conceptual album exploring working class disillusion, recording experimental tracks in his New Jersey bedroom with help from sound engineer Mike (Hauser). Bruce's supportive manager Jon (Strong) is surprised by how darkly introspective these songs are. And when recording sessions with the band don't feel quite right, Bruce instead decides to release his demos as the album Nebraska.

Intriguingly, some tracks did work with the band, including Born in the USA, Glory Days, I'm on Fire and others that would be released two years later. The film opens with a vintage-style flashback to Bruce's late-1950s childhood (played by Pellicano) with a terrifying father (Graham) and worried mother (Hoffman), then cuts pointedly to a performance of Born to Run. This pattern repeats as scenes from Bruce's past weave into these new songs.

Never an impersonation, White offers a fully invested turn as a star who wants to write songs for himself for a change. White nails the singing and is equally vivid in the thoughtful scenes. Strong and Hauser are earthy and real as men who are firmly on his side, with a likeable Krumholtz as the guy who doesn't get it. Graham and Hoffman find superb layers in complex roles. And Young offers refreshing lightness as the girlfriend he leaves hanging while he works.

This is a lovely depiction of how deeply personal art connects more strongly with a wide audience than concocted hits do. So it's a little odd that this film feels so carefully assembled to hit the key moments, getting a little bogged down in both technical aspects and family sentimentality. "I don't want to explain it," Bruce says about Nebraska. "I don't even know that I can." This film nicely captures how, by trusting his gut, he tapped into something unusually honest, creating one of the most iconic albums of all time.

themes, language, violence, sexuality 20.Oct.25

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