A Love Song for Bobby Long

2004

A Love Song for Bobby Long

Critics Consensus

A Love Song for Bobby Long gets by for a few bars on the strength of its core cast, but the story's preponderance of kooky clichés falls flat.

43%

TOMATOMETER

Total Count: 100

80%

Audience Score

User Ratings: 22,415
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Movie Info

Upon hearing of her mother's death, jaded teenage loner Purslane Hominy Will returns to New Orleans for the first time in years, ready to reclaim her childhood home. Expecting to find her late mother's house abandoned, Pursy is shocked to discover that it is inhabited by two of her mother's friends: Bobby Long, a former literature professor, and his young protege, Lawson Pines. These broken men, whose lives took a wrong turn years before, have been firmly rooted in the dilapidated house for years, encouraged only by Lawson's faltering ambitions to write a novel about Bobby Long's life. Having no intention of leaving, Pursy, Bobby Long and Lawson are all forced to live together. Yet as time passes, their tenuous, makeshift arrangement unearths a series of buried personal secrets that challenges their bonds and reveals just how inextricably their lives are intertwined.
  • Rating:
    R (for pervasive language and strong sexuality)
  • Genre:
    Drama
  • Directed By:
    Shainee Gabel
  • Written By:
    Shainee Gabel
  • In Theaters:
     wide
  • On Disc/Streaming:
  • Box Office:
    $121,476
  • Runtime:
  • Studio:
    Lions Gate Releasing

Cast

John Travolta
as Bobby Long
Scarlett Johansson
as Pursy Will
Gabriel Macht
as Lawson Pines
Deborah Kara Unger
as Georgianna
Dane Rhodes
as Cecil
Dave Jensen
as Junior
Clayne Crawford
as Lee
Sonny Shroyer
as Earl
Walter Breaux
as Ray
Warren Blosjo
as Sean
Bernard "Bunchy" Johnson
as Tiny
Gina "Ginger" Bernal
as Waitress
Douglas M. Griffin
as Man No. 1
Earl Maddox
as Man No. 2
Carol Sutton
as Ruthie
Steven Maye
as Man #3
Don Brady
as Old Man
William H. Barnett
as Old Man #2
Patrick McCullough
as Streetcar Boy
Leanne Cochran
as Streetcar Girl
Nick Loren
as Merchant
Brooke Mueller
as Sandy
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News & Interviews for A Love Song for Bobby Long

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John Travolta and James Gandolfini Join Lonely Hearts
Lions Gate Looking for a Buyer?
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Critic Reviews for A Love Song for Bobby Long

All Critics (100) | Top Critics (30) | Fresh (43) | Rotten (57)

View All Critic Reviews (100)

Audience Reviews for A Love Song for Bobby Long

  • Jun 30, 2013
    A Love Song for Bobby Long is a compelling and touching film about family. After her estranged mother dies Pursy Will inherits her house and discovers that it comes with two eccentric men who were her mother's close friends; and through them she re-discovers her mother and cleans up her life. The film has a good cast that includes Scarlett Johansson, John Travolta, and Gabriel Macht; who all deliver excellent performances. Travolta in particular gives a stunning performance that's unlike anything that he's done before. The writing is also quite good, with some very strong dialog. Though a tad melodramatic at times, A Love Song for Bobby Long is an impressive and moving character drama.
    Dann M Super Reviewer
  • Apr 28, 2011
    Travolta at his best, and Scarlett Johansson looking as sexy as ever in this moving, authentic, and quite brilliant drama. Set in New Orleans, it has a charming, old, and worn look. Maybe too slow for some, but well worth it for those that can relate.
    Jeffrey M Super Reviewer
  • Dec 09, 2010
    This was different and generally an interesting character study of three people.The down side was too much profanity, too much bickering and too much "attitude.So, if you like good acting and appreciate outstanding cinematography, which this movie boasts and don't mind soap-opera-type stories, you should like this film very much. This has a certain fascination to it, but I got tired of the constant profanity and negative personalities of two of those three main characters so I lost interest by the halfway mark.
    Mouhannad S Super Reviewer
  • Jun 23, 2009
    Brilliant. John Travolta is so utterly lovable in this. The whole plot of the movie is fantastic and all of the actors perform amazingly. One of my favorites, for sure.
    Rachel F Super Reviewer
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