The Soloist (2009)

A Los Angeles journalist befriends a homeless Juilliard-trained musician, while looking for a new article for the paper.

Director:

Joe Wright

Writers:

Susannah Grant (screenplay), Steve Lopez (book)

Stars:

Jamie Foxx, Robert Downey Jr., Catherine Keener

1 win & 3 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jamie Foxx	...	Nathaniel Ayers
Robert Downey Jr.	...	Steve Lopez
Catherine Keener	...	Mary Weston
Tom Hollander	...	Graham Claydon
LisaGay 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 Villaraigosa
Ilia Volok	...	Harry Barnoff

Storyline

In 2005, the only thing hurting Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez more than his face from a recent bike accident was his pressing need for story ideas. That is when he discovers Nathaniel Ayers, a mentally ill, homeless street musician who possesses extraordinary talent, even through his half-broken instruments. Inspired by his story, Lopez writes an acclaimed series of articles about Ayers and attempts to do more to help both him and the rest of the underclass of LA have a better life. However, Lopez's good intentions run headlong in the hard realities of the strength of Ayers' personal demons and the larger social injustices facing the homeless. Regardless, Lopez and Ayers must find a way to conquer their deepest anxieties and frustrations to hope for a brighter future for both of them.

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Plot Keywords:

musician | journalist | los angeles times | columnist | underpass | 

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Taglines:

Life has a mind of its own

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Genres:

Drama | Biography | Music

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some drug use and language

Details

Official Sites:

DreamWorks [us] Official site [es]

Country:

UK USA France

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 April 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Imagining Beethoven

Filming Locations:

Biltmore Hotel - 506 S. Grand Avenue, Downtown, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$60,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£373,151 (UK) (25 September 2009)

Gross:

£1,060,061 (UK) (9 October 2009)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks SKG, Universal Pictures, StudioCanal

Technical Specs

Runtime:

117 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital SDDS DTS

Color:

Color (DeLuxe)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite his distrust of two-dimensional images, Nathaniel Ayers did attend the premiere of this film in Los Angeles with his family, who flew in for the occasion. He rarely watches movies or television.

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Goofs

Juilliard dance is not a ballet school. Reference was made to ballerinas and you see them in tutus and make up when he is living in NYC and attending Juilliard. Although they do have ballet classes, it is a contemporary dance focus. They do not do ballets.

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Quotes

Steve Lopez: I've never loved anything the way he loves music.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credits, the music concludes with the sound of a cassette tape grinding to a stop, referencing Lopez's omnipresent recorder.

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Connections

References American Idol (2002)

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Soundtracks

"String Quartet No. 14, Op. 131, Mvmt. I"
Written by Ludwig van Beethoven
Adapted by Dario Marianelli
Performed by The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra
Conducted by Benjamin Wallfisch

User Reviews

The Truth about Schizophrenia

I sometimes work clinically with schizophrenics. This film shows us the truth about working with severely mentally ill people. David, the man who runs the shelter for the homeless honestly spoke the truth with his stance that is opposite of what the Pharmaceutical Industry, most of psychiatry and the legal system try to make us believe. David was my hero in this movie.

All though the movie goes quickly over Jamie Fox's childhood trauma and losses -- it's still there, i.e. no father and the truck on fire represent some of the traumas that created his illness. Homeless people with mental illness did not come from healthy childhoods. Almost all came from repeated childhood trauma.(see New Zealand Psychologist John Read PhD and colleagues, the ACE Study from the CDC, and Charles Whitfield's book The Truth about Mental Illness, 2004).

Hollywood did not cover over the painful truths in this story. Jamie Fox's character's mother and his sister were good people and that comes through but they couldn't prevent his wounding. At the end of the film, we are told "90,000 Homeless people in Los Angeles." We walked out of the theater overwhelmed with that figure and uplifted by this true story.

If you're really interested in the truth about schizophrenia there is an excellent DVD documentary called Take These Broken Wings: Recover from Schizophrenia without Medication by Daniel Mackler