Who else, if not him, ultimately? The American star of the bear (Disney+) Jeremy Allen White, boosted to the rank of sex symbol From the Calvin Klein ads, magnify Bruce Springsteen in the biopic, or rather anti-biopic, of Scott Cooper, which will be released in theaters on October 22.
Without claiming to be exhaustive, the film, adapted from the short story by Warren Zanes, avoids the trap of a cloying and hagiographic story. Instead, it focuses on the little-known genesis of the iconic album. Nebraskarecorded in the early 1980s. The young American musician, who was 31 years old at the time, has just finished his tour. the river. He is at the top of the charts, he is acclaimed wherever he goes and little by little he becomes a global icon, although he is not one yet. But he remains stuck in his melancholy. The ghosts of the past come running.
The nonsense persists. Write, lonely. Again. He plucks the strings of his guitar, walks back and forth in front of the haunted house of his childhood, composes Born in the USAhe dates a blonde (played by Odessa Young), buys a car, negotiates with his manager (Jeremy Strong). Then save Nebraska on a four-track recorder in a dingy New Jersey bedroom. There he faces the reluctance and greed of his record company, which prefers to turn him into a hit machine.
But the singer, in the midst of a psychological collapse, persists again. The acoustic album is coming out, and on its own terms. No promotion. Without his face on the cover. Raw, beautiful, melodious, apart, even somber, Nebraska It is perhaps the best album of his career. At least the most authentic one, like the movie.
Voice and harmonica.
On the screen, Jeremy Allen White, with messy hair and droopy eyes, sings the rocker’s words, plays the harmonica and thrills the rooms. To prepare for the role, the actor enlisted the support of Eric Vetro, a renowned singing teacher, described as “the spiritual guru to Hollywood’s biggest stars” by the Los Angeles Times. The man notably supported Angelina Jolie for her role in MariaAriana Grande and Jonathan Bailey in WickedTimothée Chalamet in Wonka AND A complete strangerAustin Butler Elvisor Renée Zellweger in Judy.
Bullied Jeremy Allen White also met Bruce Springsteen. The first interview dates back to July 2024 in an empty Wembley stadium in London, before one of his concerts. “I was nervous, but Bruce is so available, generous, accommodating, that after a few minutes I felt very comfortable and the conversation began quickly,” the actor tells Vanity Fair, who is collaborating for the second time with filmmaker Scott Cooper after Strictly criminal in 2015.
“It was enough for me to see him in the bear know it was him, the boss said in The Telegraph shortly after this inaugural discussion. He has an intense inner life, accompanied by a bit of panache.” “He’s just the best guy,” added Jeremy Allen White.
play without singing
While filming the musical scenes, the singer-songwriter was also in the studio, not far from Jeremy Allen White. “Of course, it was difficult,” the 33-year-old recalls in Vanity Fair. “I had pre-recorded a lot of the songs and he had listened to them. We had talked about it and he had told me: ‘You sing like me, but you manage to make the song your own.’ And that was exactly the philosophy we wanted for the film.”
He specifies: “Bruce, this holy man, tried to make himself very small [en studio]. But it’s Bruce Springsteen, obviously taking up space. But even when he was present on set, he gave us all the space of expression we needed, real freedom. Always discreet, deeply respectful.”
And for the concert sequences, whether filmed in a stadium or a small venue, the rock legend was on set again. “[Bruce Springtseen] He was in charge of heating the room, explains the American actor to Trois Couleurs. Most of the time I was present on stage with real musicians, especially in the sequence of Born to run – and the extras were so happy to be there, so expressive, that it was very easy to immerse yourself in this atmosphere.”
On stage, Jeremy Allen White sets a course: vibrate, empty himself, blush, drip with sweat, give himself body and soul, just like his alter ego. “If the camera managed to capture that, then it was a victory,” he said.
However, Scott Cooper did not want his actor to imitate the star. “I had to manage to embody Bruce without betraying him and, at the same time, make the character my own by creating an inner life for him that was as precise as possible,” says the Hollywood star in Three Colors. A way also for him to break away from the intimidating shadow of the international superstar and get closer to the young singer he was at that time.
Already last January, Bruce Springsteen, in person, applauded the actor’s performance on the SiriusXM show: “He sings well. He sings very well. Jeremy is such a wonderful actor that you can identify with him immediately, he gives a performance of mine that the fans will deeply recognize. He did an excellent job.” We couldn’t have said it better.
Source: BFM TV
