IMDb > The Soloist (2009)
The Soloist
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The Soloist (2009) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 77 | slideshow) Videos (see all 30 NEW)
The Soloist (2009) -- This is the theatrical trailer for The Soloist, directed by Joe Wright and starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jr.
The Soloist (2009) -- This is a clip from the movie The Soloist.
The Soloist (2009) -- Interview: Lisa Gay Hamilton "On the pride she feels being involved with the film"
The Soloist (2009) -- A Los Angeles Journalist, befriends a homeless Julliard trained musician, while looking for a new article for the paper.
The Soloist (2009) -- Trailer: #1

Overview

User Rating:
6.9/10   8,551 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 14% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Joe Wright
Writers (WGA):
Susannah Grant (screenplay)
Steve Lopez (book)
Contact:
View company contact information for The Soloist on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
24 April 2009 (USA) more
Genre:
Drama | Biography | Music more
Tagline:
Life has a mind of its own more
Plot:
A Los Angeles journalist befriends a homeless Julliard-trained musician, while looking for a new article for the paper. full summary | full synopsis
NewsDesk:
(306 articles)
Joe Wright Not Directing 'My Fair Lady'
 (From Get The Big Picture. 30 October 2009, 3:33 PM, PDT)

Keira Knightley and Joe Wright Reteaming For My Fair Lady Remake
 (From Slash Film. 25 October 2009, 9:00 AM, PDT)

User Comments:
Who are you? more (89 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Jamie Foxx ... Nathaniel Ayers

Robert Downey Jr. ... Steve Lopez

Catherine Keener ... Mary Weston

Tom Hollander ... Graham Claydon

Lisa Gay Hamilton ... Jennifer Ayers (as Lisagay Hamilton)

Nelsan Ellis ... David Carter

Rachael Harris ... Leslie Bloom

Stephen Root ... Curt Reynolds
Lorraine Toussaint ... Flo Ayers

Justin Martin ... Young Nathaniel
Kokayi Ampah ... Bernie Carpenter

Patrick Tatten ... Paul Jr.

Susane Lee ... Marisa (as Susane E. Lee)

Marcos De Silvas ... Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa
Ilia Volok ... Harry Barnoff
more
Create a character page for: ?

Additional Details

Also Known As:
Imagining Beethoven (USA) (working title)
more
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some drug use and language.
Runtime:
117 min
Country:
UK | USA | France
Language:
English
Color:
Color (DeLuxe)
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Dolby Digital | SDDS | DTS
Company:
DreamWorks SKG more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Most of the homeless people shown in the film are actually homeless. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When Lopez leaves the Lamp facility after waiting for Ayers, he gets into his Saab and sees a prostitute walk in front of his car towards some people. She is seen clearly because of the reflection of his car headlights. When the scene changes back to the car, the headlights are not on. more
Quotes:
Nathaniel Ayers: You can't hold down angels. more
Movie Connections:
References The Wise Little Hen (1934) more

FAQ

Is "The Soloist" based on a book?
How much sex, violence, and profanity are in this movie?
Who is Nathaniel Anthony Ayers?
more
47 out of 67 people found the following comment useful.
Who are you?, 24 April 2009
10/10
Author: Milostiva from United States

Do not think this as one of those schmaltzy ersatz living experiences. That is what the people who packaged the movie want you to think. This is a movie about failure, and if you had enough of grim and depressing news lately, do not see the movie. On the other hand, if you are not suffering from empathy deficit disorder you are ready for the experience. The story is of Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez, and Skid Row dweller Nathaniel Ayers. Lopez wrote about his friendship with Ayers in his columns, which were later adapted into a book on which this movie is based. The experience that the director and his actors dish up is the rough kind, the sort that acknowledges limitations. Wright took firm control of the movie's tone: The first half describes Lopez's meeting and initial attempts to help Ayers, it is about feeling good, redemption. The second, more realistic part is about the sweat and pain that comes after the saving, for both the redeemed and the redeemer. This movie is less about a friendship between a journalist and a down-and-out musician, than it is about seeing what, and who we are we looking at. The movie is only in part about a serious illness. It does a god job of getting at the isolation we feel when we have tried to do the right thing and never could do enough. In the end, "The Soloist" is about how unknowable other people really are.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for The Soloist (2009)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
One of the worst performances of 2009. brettjm3
Open Letter to: THE TRAILER EDITOR Pr9mari05
what's the name... reika-3
Suffering from cinematography and art direction artemis00
ahhhh, so what happened? bono_vox_is_god
READ THE BOOK Mobutsky
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