Crazy (2008)

Inspired by the life of Hank Garland, CRAZY is the story of a legendary guitar player who emerged from Nashville in the 1950's.

Director:

Rick Bieber

Writers:

Rick Bieber, Jason Ehlers

Stars:

Waylon Payne, Ali Larter, Lane Garrison

10 wins.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Waylon Payne	...	Hank Garland
Ali Larter	...	Evelyn Garland
Lane Garrison	...	Billy Garland
Scott Michael Campbell	...	Billy Byrd
John Fleck	...	Lloyd Copas
Timothy Omundson	...	Paul Howard (as Tim Omundson)
David Conrad	...	Ryan Bradford
Silas Weir Mitchell	...	Neal-Studio Manager
Eden Rountree	...	Thelma
Raymond O'Connor	...	Jimmy
Beau Baxter	...	Jerry-Record Producer
Brent Briscoe	...	Doug Johnson
Mikey Hawley	...	Young Hank
Steve Vai	...	Hank Williams
Maya McLaughlin	...	Paul's 'Wife'

Storyline

Inspired by the life of Hank Garland, CRAZY is the story of a legendary guitar player who emerged from Nashville in the 1950's.

---

Plot Keywords:

cleavage | scantily clad female | public sex | blue panties | mini skirt | 

---

Taglines:

Everyone wanted him. No one could control him.

---

Genres:

Biography | Drama | Music

---

Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some sexual content

Did You Know?

Trivia

Based on the life of Nashville guitar player Hank Garland.

---

Goofs

At the beginning of the movie Goldie Hill is singing "Honky Tonk Blues" in 1945. The song was originally recorded by Hank Williams in 1952, seven years after the scene was to have taken place.

---

Connections

References The Eddy Arnold Show (1952)

---

Soundtracks

Crazy
Written by Willie Nelson
Performed by Madeleine Peyroux

User Reviews

Now this is music! Depressing but well-done story, though

When I hear what passes for music in businesses and in movies and TV, I wonder if there is any hope. Then I watch a movie like this. All of the music is so good! The worst song is "Jingle Bell Rock", and that's only because I want my Christmas music very traditional.

It's hard to believe a bad boy like Hank Garland can play the guitar in such a mellow style. Of course, he can do rock and roll, too, which is what someone like him would be expected to. But it's the good kind. And he seems happiest when he is playing.

And then there is Wes Montgomery. Such a nice, pleasant jazz sound. As portrayed by Tony MacAlpine, he looks like he's mad at someone, or at the very least you don't want to mess with him. But he and his other musicians do easy listening right, with sort of an attitude to keep it from being boring.

Nice restaurants also have a pleasant but more generic jazz sound.

Mandy Barnett as Patsy Cline (who, ironically, is never shown singing the title song) and Shawn Colvin as Kitty Wells (I did not know who she was supposed to be) give great performances. They never speak lines, but that's not important.

Jason Alan Smith as Elvis was a disappointment. He never speaks, but he has that trademark sneer on "Amazing Grace", which goes against the image of Elvis showing respect while singing gospel music.

But this is more than just great music. Hank Garland starts out as a clean-cut kid, but later on as a respected backup performer, he has enough money to get what he wants, and manages to be charming with the women he can get, though men better not make him mad. All he seems to know how to do when angered is punch somebody. Fortunately for Evelyn, it's never her. Though once she is married to him, he tells her he cares and never manages to show it. His career is his first priority. There are women, but of course they don't mean anything--right? Garland does love their daughter, but he's hardly ever around. Nevertheless, Evelyn "stands by her man", but she does have needs.

And while he claims to have co-written "Jingle Bell Rock", despite what the movie's credits say, he must deal with a system that makes him choose between being a performer and a writer. Garland wants to be both.

And the people who don't want Garland going against the system can do more than just punch Garland's lights out.

While much of the movie other than the music is unpleasant to watch, the acting performances are good. Ali Larter showed obvious concern, for example, when she noticed another woman looking at her husband.

There's a reason for the movie's title (other than the Patsy Cline song that is limited to the closing credits) which I will only say is revealed in the first scene. Other than that, I feel I would be giving away too much. I have to wonder why "Sugarfoot" was not used as a title, since two songs with this name are Garland's trademarks, and this becomes a nickname.

The movie deals with racism. Country/rock performer Garland discovers jazz and dares to enter an all-black club where the music is played. He is seen as an outsider, but once he starts playing that kind of music, this is no longer the case. But having a "colored man" in his group backfires once he returns to the South. Hotels won't welcome the man, and Evelyn claims she is trying to raise their daughter with the right values and can't have the likes of him around her.

It's worth seeing, for the music if nothing else. Just remember Hank Garland went through so much misery to make us so happy.

Details

Official Sites:

MySpace page Offical site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 January 2017 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

The Hank Garland Story

Filming Locations:

Agoura Hills, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

FN Crazy Film LLC

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1