Clint Eastwood succeeds in revealing his softer side in Honkytonk Man, a surprisingly sweet and heartwarming road movie that hums along at a pleasant pace.
Clint Eastwood succeeds in revealing his softer side in Honkytonk Man, a surprisingly sweet and heartwarming road movie that hums along at a pleasant pace.
Clint Eastwood put his tough-guy image on hold for this personal project, which follows a musician taking one final chance at the big time. Red Stovall (Eastwood) is a would-be country singer who has been bouncing around the margins of the music business for years. With nowhere in particular to go, Red arrives at the failing Oklahoma farm of his sister for an extended visit, where her son Whit (Kyle Eastwood) quickly bonds with his uncle. However, it's obvious that Red is in very poor health,
drinking heavily and breathing with difficulty, and when Red is invited to audition for the Grand Old Opry in Nashville, Whit tags along for the road trip to keep an eye on his ailing uncle. En route, Red and Whit are joined by Whit's grandfather (John McIntire) and another hopeful vocalist, Marlene (Alexa Kenin), who like Red is chasing her own dreams of stardom on the Opry. Clint Eastwood performed his own vocals and guitar work for Honkytonk Man, and a number of Nashville legends appear in cameo roles, including Marty Robbins, Porter Wagoner, Ray Price, Merle Travis, and Johnny Gimble. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi
It is a guileless tribute not only to plain values of plain people in Depression America, but also to the sweet spirit of country-and-western music before it got all duded up for the urban cowboys.
The whole thing veers wildly in quality, and no Eastwood-hater should go within a mile of it; but few lovers of American cinema could fail to be moved by a venture conceived so recklessly against the spirit of its times.
Uneven, indulgent and overlong, but, perversely, it still has a few good moments: the appearance of the some country greats, Eastwood's character trying to sing through his illness, the picturesque scenery.
A bittersweet character study, it works remarkably well. You even begin to believe Clint Eastwood in the role. The star's son, Kyle Eastwood, makes an impressive film debut.
June 3, 2007
Dean McKenna
Super Reviewer
Likeable story of a country singer trying to make to nashville. Great change of pace for Eastwood from westerns.
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