Crazy

Director Rick Bieber

Review By Linda Overly

Writing this review of Crazy, the story of legendary guitarist, Frank Garland, has been the most challenging of all the film and music critiques I have ever done.  At first I wasn't sure why.  I actually really enjoy biographies, especially about musicians.  There have been many hardships and trials in the lives of entertainers and otherwise famous individuals, but I believe it can be argued that many musicians and their families have suffered the most tragedies of all.  Many have endured difficult childhoods, bitter divorces, untimely losses of loved ones, drug addictions, overdoses, suicides, and accidental deaths, etc. It is easy for me admire them when I find out they have difficult problems like the rest of us, and yet they are able to overcome adversity.

So with that said, even though I had never heard of Frank Garland, I was prepared to be rather enthralled by his story.  It may be strange to say but I really wanted to like this biography.  I did appreciate the musical precision and obvious talent by Waylon Payne who starred as Garland, and the alluring performance by Ali Larter, who played Garland's wife, Evelyn.  I also appreciated the wardrobe that was in every way appropriate for the era, but overall I was left aggravated after seeing the film.

What was disappointing about Crazy is that while I saw the film in its entirety, I walked away feeling like I had learned very little about Frank Garland except his career frustrations in Nashville and that he was an exceptional country and jazz sideman on recordings with Elvis Presley, Patsy Cline and Jerry Lee Lewis, among others.  I also felt unsatisfied with the scenes with his wife because it was difficult to decipher the kind of relationship they shared.  Instead of feeling like I got to see the life story of Frank Garland, I felt like I just caught a glimpse.  I felt as though I got to the movie late and then was asked to leave early.

After I saw the film, I did some research to gain a greater understanding of who Frank Garland was and there was a lot of information on the suffering and pain, among other details in the life of this amazingly gifted musician that should have been included in Crazy.  It's a shame because I believe he would be more appreciated and respected if these important facts were integrated in to the movie.