“Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere” upends the conventions of the modern biopic. There’s no rise and fall, no decades-spanning journey, no career retrospective. Instead, the film provides an intimate look at just over one year of the musician’s life as he writes the left-turn folk album “Nebraska.”
Bruce Springsteen — The Boss to many — rose to fame in the 1970s for his lively, enthusiastic personality which shone bright as he pioneered the heartland rock genre. Combining exuberant musicality with poetic lyricism tackling working class issues, Springsteen reached new heights with his most popular album yet, 1980’s “The River.” His life halted when “The River” tour ended and he returned home to New Jersey, where he rented a house in serene Colts Neck. Memories of a rough childhood weighing heavy, he found catharsis by singing from the perspectives of working people across the United States who fight to escape the mundane tragedies of their lives. These songs would become “Nebraska.”
“Deliver Me from Nowhere” chronicles the album’s creation, anchoring on Bruce’s (Jeremy Allen White) tumultuous emotional state while branching out to detail his romantic life and music industry battles. With stunning authenticity, the film burrows deep into Bruce’s psyche and shows us his flaws. He finds it difficult to commit to Faye Romano (Odessa Young), sending their budding romance down an unorthodox path. He’s stubborn about changing the sound of “Nebraska” to something radio-friendly, which strains his relationship with manager Jon Landau (Jeremy Strong). Through the noise, Bruce holds onto these relationships as best he can.
But the true soul of the film is Bruce’s relationship with his father Douglas (Stephen Graham). Through a gorgeous black-and-white parallel subplot that takes place when Bruce was eight, we see the intimidating and assertive figure Douglas was. An alcoholic fighting mental illness, he teaches his son to punch and shows him the mature horror film “The Night of the Hunter.” Douglas instructs Bruce to always protect himself and those he loves, instilling an individualist mindset that still burdens Bruce decades later. Channeling pain into art, Bruce picks up his guitar.
Songwriting has always been Springsteen’s way of making sense of the world. On “Nebraska,” he evokes the aching powerlessness of everyday people. On the title track and “Johnny 99,” the protagonists are driven to murder, the former by the sheer “meanness in this world,” the latter by economic distraught. Others must move on from crushed dreams of redemption, like the speaker of “My Father’s House.” Springsteen even weaves in stories from his own life. On the decidedly personal track “Used Cars,” he affirms “Now mister, the day the lottery I win / I ain’t ever gonna ride in no used car again,” making Springsteen’s line in the film that he’s “never owned a new car before” that much more impactful.
Music is an avenue of connection for Bruce, whether that’s bonding over Little Richard with Faye or Sam Cooke with Jon. We see in real time how his life experiences inform his artistic endeavors, brought to life through several wonderful montages. While a handful of electric concert scenes feature, Bruce’s unfiltered writing process and intimate recording sessions are what it’s all about. The film is far more interested in uncovering the internal than basking in the external.
Springsteen has been vocal about grappling with depression during the time period depicted. The film portrays this admirably: Bruce is at odds with himself, convinced that pushing people away equates to being true to himself, stuck believing in this mutual exclusivity. When Jon steps in as a true friend, Bruce learns to accept help at a time when the words “mental health” and “therapy” were staunchly taboo. But none of this is done neatly. Bruce is still imperfect, as was his father, as is the world he writes about in his songs.
“Deliver Me from Nowhere” is as refreshing a biopic as ever. Through captivating filmmaking, it demythologizes a tortured artist. Though we may see Bruce as a paragon of rock ‘n’ roll and Americana, especially as he now comments on American authoritarianism, we must remember that he is just a man. “Deliver Me from Nowhere” understands this. The film proves a welcome left turn for its genre, grounded in real people and authentic, often painful stories, just like “Nebraska.”
Contact Leo Field at [email protected].