Scott Cooper’s Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere has been born to make an Oscar run.
The Boss biopic, starring Jeremy Allen White as the iconic rocker, is earning largely positive reviews following its Friday debut at the Telluride Film Festival. Adapted from Warren Zanes’s biography Deliver Me From Nowhere, the film explores a pivotal two-year stretch in Bruce Springsteen’s life, centering on the introspective period that led to the creation of his 1982 solo acoustic album Nebraska. Odessa Young plays Springsteen’s love interest, while Jeremy Strong takes on the role of Jon Landau, his loyal manager.
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Robert Daniels at RogerEbert.com says the film “is initially overburdened with cliché,” but soon finds its footing. “Then Deliver Me from Nowhere shifts. It begins to open up, becoming a soulful and meditative character study of a depressed artist laid bare.”
Daniels is particularly struck by White’s portrayal of Springsteen: “He’s pained, tortured and fearful, emotions that are translated through his bulging facial features and his stammering delivery. He does less emulation and more acting, listening and reacting, thinking about his character’s emotions.” And when it comes to the portrayal of Jon Landau, he says Strong brings him to life with subtlety and ease: “Strong also takes on a greater role, offering the most tender performance of his career,” Daniels writes. “Strong never overplays Landau’s support, allowing his eyes to transmit kindness with a light smile to punctuate the moment.”
Variety‘s Peter Debruge applauds the film for sidestepping the usual rockstar biopic clichés, choosing instead to zero in on a “soul-searching moment” in Springsteen’s life. He also praises the casting of White, writing that the Bear star “slips easily into the worn denim and sleeveless T-shirts that were Springsteen’s signature. More importantly, he does all his own singing, capturing the scratchy, soul-searching baritone that marked that period of his career.”
Scott Feinberg at The Hollywood Reporter agrees that the film, which explores one of the most difficult chapters in Springsteen’s life, stands apart from other Oscar-recognized rock biopics like Bohemian Rhapsody, Rocketman, and Elvis.
“Springsteen is as much a film about depression as it is a film about being a rock star,” he writes. He notes that while he “tremendously appreciate the film’s great attention to detail and accuracy” in portraying the period during which The Boss was crafting his Nebraska album, he questions whether audiences “will care about that as much as wanting to see a depiction of the man they know from the nearly half-century since Nebraska.”
Yet the performances, he says, are undeniable: “In any event, one thing that nobody can take issue with is the quality of the three central performances in the film. As the lead, White projects Springsteen’s soulfulness and swagger, and capably does his own singing. And in supporting roles, Strong gives another transformative turn… while Young is charming and vulnerable. All three will be strong contenders for Oscar nominations.”
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