Blaze

What a tremendous surprise on behalf of Ethan Hawke. I didn't know anything about its subject but it didn't matter and it's really not that necessary. This is a trip completely worth enjoying no matter which side of the spectrum you are.

My Mellow Melodies. Blaze Hawke, surprisingly doesn't have the Linklater-ness in him. His methods are not illuminating but romantic. He craves for the love and the chemistry that he evidently understands, is often the crux of the game. Unfortunately, he doesn't have the guns to pull it off. The actors doesn't have the caliber to carry it all on their shoulders. In fact, the push, the spark, itself isn't enough for them to boost off for a long marathon. Their fatal sprints and leaps is not a way to be still, to just breathe, on screen. Ben **** plays the titled character Blaze Foley and might show some promising talent on the dramatic monologues and musical numbers. Sybil played by Alia Shawkat is the major upset. She is incredible in their heartwarming moments as a couple sharing some flirty humorous talks, but as soon as the edginess comes in on the equation, the mutterings fades into silence. She fails to push **** back and then pull him. One of the most dramatic scene where Shawkat completely loses at drunk **** is a fine example of it, as the audience fails to grasp any whatsoever drama projected on screen. On terms of writing, the script does have antics to rely upon, which may not come off easy to behold it on screen. And yes, Hawke fails to glorify them on screen, and primary reason to that would be him not trying to build up any sequence to that one moment that it hinges upon. The conversations and the cameos stabilizes this over thought out film, where in both the cases you can see a glimpse of Richard Linklater; all the jokes are funny in here. Blaze is anything but blazing, it is warm, but definitely not blazing, it is cozy but not blazing, calculative not blazing.