BEFORE: This time Jessica Lange carries over, and I'm back on to singers.
THE PLOT: Jessica Lange stunningly portrays Patsy Cline, the velvet-voiced country music singer who died in a tragic plane crash at the height of her fame.
AFTER: In some ways the Patsy Cline story seems like a logical follow-up to last month's chain with/about Marilyn Monroe, Bettie Page, and Frances Farmer. Not that I consider her a glamour girl, but her biopic shares some elements in common with theirs - for example, a first husband who gets written out of the story very early. For some reason, screenwriters seem to think that famous women meeting their 2nd husbands makes a great place to start a film.
For Patsy Cline, that's Charlie Dick, and the film portrays the relationship as very loving at first, but also biting and sarcastic, which eventually spirals down to cheating on each other and a cycle of domestic violence, breaking up, reconciliation (and, repetition).
The main reason to suffer through their relationship baggage is to get to those songs - which Lange quite obviously lip-synched to, because singing them like Patsy would be impossible. Her sync is fine, but she sort of over-enunciates, which comes off as over-expression of a sort. Admittedly I never watched Patsy Cline perform, so I don't know how expressive she was, or how wide she opened her mouth while she sang.
I do know the songs, however - while producing my first animated feature I worked out of the animator's apartment, and for about three years he kept the same 5 CDs in his changer: Willie Nelson's Greatest Hits (the pre-1970's ones), Patsy Cline's 12 Greatest Hits, Roseanne Cash's "The Wheel", Emmylou Harris' "Wrecking Ball", and an EP from Junior Brown. Of those 5 CDs, I only really liked that last one, and so I had to suffer through listening to the other 4. Problem was, the animator didn't realize there was a "Disc Skip" button, so 9 times out of 10 the workday would start with Willie Nelson or Patsy Cline, and we'd never get to Junior Brown. So I've heard Patsy Cline songs like "Crazy" or "Walkin' After Midnight" so many times that they barely even register any more.
So, yeah, I'd say I'm pretty familiar with the material. And a lot of her songs come from that typical country "you cheated on me" place. With the film detailing the troubles in her marriage, it kind of all makes sense now. "I'm crazy for loving you..." Well, at least she admits it. "I Fall to Pieces" - well, that explains why she kept going back for more, I guess. "I'm back where I belong, back in baby's arms..." OK, good luck with that. "Why can't I forget you and start my life anew..." Well, I'm not sure but I'm glad you're asking yourself these important questions.
Also starring Ed Harris (last seen in "China Moon"), Ann Wedgeworth, David Clennon (last seen in "J. Edgar"), James Staley, with cameos from John Goodman (last seen in "Argo"), P.J. Soles, Bruce Kirby and Riders in the Sky (who once gave me an autographed can of Spam, and I still have it.)
RATING: 5 out of 10 demolition derby cars
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