Scott Cooper’s “Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere” places a pivotal moment in the rocker’s career under a microscope, seeking to depict how an artist on the verge of superstardom could implode under the stressors of sudden success and overwhelming depression. It’s also a bit of a trivia machine, dispersing intriguing tidbits that leave you wondering what might’ve happened had Bruce Springsteen embraced the more commercial offers being flung his way after his wildly successful tour in support of the LP “The River.”
If you’re not a big Springsteen fan, there are many surprises to be found in Cooper’s movie. One of the most intriguing what-ifs is filmmaker Paul Schrader offering the musician a starring role in a movie titled “Born in the U.S.A.” You can certainly see the appeal on Schrader’s end. By 1981 (where the film begins), Springsteen had established himself as an electrifying presence on the concert stage, which seemed like it would translate well to acting in movies (à la Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley). The musician turned Schrader down, but, as we all know, discovered profound inspiration in the title of the movie. While this might seem like outright creative theft, Springsteen paid Schrader back handsomely with a new song for his re-titled movie.
Read more: 15 Best Acting Performances By Musicians In Movies
Springsteen brought the glow to Paul Schrader’s Light of Day
Michael J. Fox as Joe Rasnick and Joan Jett as Patti Rasnick rock a Cleveland bar in Light of Day – Tri-Star Pictures
Clearly, Springsteen came out on top of this deal when “Born in the U.S.A.” became a 17-time Platinum selling record in America. This is the album that made him the global icon he wasn’t sure he wanted to be, but ultimately fully embraced.
Of the 1970s film brats, no one was less destined for mainstream success than Paul Schrader. The Calvinist provocateur of Grand Rapids, Michigan tackled thorny subjects but lacked his peers’ taste for pure cinema. Perhaps if Schrader had convinced Springsteen to star in the film that became 1987’s “Light of Day,” he would’ve earned the opportunity to take on large-scale projects. I doubt it. I’ve always felt Schrader, the writer of “Taxi Driver” and director of dour character studies, wound up right where he belonged.
Nevertheless, “Light of Day” was commercially ambitious. Schrader cast Michael J. Fox (at the height of his “Family Ties” fame) and Joan Jett as the brother-and-sister glue of a Cleveland, Ohio bar band. While Fox struggles valiantly to play against Yuppie-spawn type, Jett digs deep to match the thespian fireworks set off by all-timer Gena Rowlands. Neither is fully successful, but their effort is still captivating. It’s a good movie.
“Light of Day” ends with Fox and Jett putting aside their sibling rivalry long enough to rock out to the rousing, Springsteen-penned title song in a Cleveland bar (with the great Michael McKean on bass), and it sends you out of the movie on a high. It’s one of my favorite Boss songs, so I’m not surprised he plays it frequently while on tour. It’s a glimpse into where his career might’ve gone had he been talked out of “Nebraska.”
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