Your most urgent question (I’m sure) is why did I put a hyphen in biopic. The answer is that I learned recently that a majority of people pronounce biopic to rhyme with myopic! (In other words, they are parsing it as bi-opic rather than bio-pic. Strange but true.)

OK, now onto your other questions. First, of course, how is the movie? The answer is that it’s surprisingly good. Just don’t expect a comprehensive biography of Bruce Springsteen, because that isn’t what it is, nor is it what it set out to be. It’s basically a pair of snapshots: How (and why) The Boss made the album Nebraska, plus flashbacks to his youth. But there’s an overlay to both: Springsteen’s sometimes debilitating depression, which the movie pulls no punches about. There’s also a lot of interesting material about his manager, Jon Landau.

Second, if you know me personally, you probably wonder what possessed me to watch a movie about a rock-and-roll performer. Yes, he’s not just any rock-and-roll performer but it’s still surprising. The answer is threefold:

• I’m from New Jersey.
• Bruce is my friend Meredith’s favorite artist.
• Bruce is Preet Bharara’s favorite artist.

Your third question is what makes me think I’m qualified to review this movie. The answer is that I’m really not, but I can recommend a review that is informative and well-written. No point in trying to rephrase what that review says; just go and read it yourself!

Categories: Movies & (occasionally) TV