The Soloist

The Soloist
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Joe Wright
Produced by	Gary Foster Russ Krasnoff
Written by	Susannah Grant
Based on	The Soloist: A Lost Dream, an Unlikely Friendship, and the Redemptive Power of Music by Steve Lopez
Starring	Jamie Foxx Robert Downey, Jr. Catherine Keener Tom Hollander Lisa Gay Hamilton
Music by	Dario Marianelli
Cinematography	Seamus McGarvey
Edited by	Paul Tothill
Production company	DreamWorks Pictures StudioCanal Participant Media Working Title Films
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures (North America) Universal Pictures (international)
Release dates	24 April 2009 (US) 11 September 2009 (UK)
Running time	117 min.
Country	United States United Kingdom France
Language	English
Budget	$60 million[1]
Box office	$38.3 million[2]

The Soloist is a 2009 British-American drama film directed by Joe Wright, and starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr.. It is based on the true story of Nathaniel Ayers, a musician who developed schizophrenia and became homeless. The screenplay by Susannah Grant is based on the book, The Soloist by Steve Lopez.

Foxx portrays Ayers, who is considered a cello prodigy, and Downey portrays Lopez, a Los Angeles Times columnist who discovers Ayers and writes about him in the newspaper. The film was released in theatres on 24 April 2009^[3] and on DVD and Blu-ray August 5.

Plot

In 2005, Steve Lopez (Robert Downey, Jr.) is a journalist working for the L.A. Times. He is divorced and now works for his ex-wife, Mary (Catherine Keener), an editor. A biking accident lands Lopez in a hospital.

One day, he hears a violin being played beautifully. Investigating, he encounters Nathaniel Ayers (Jamie Foxx), a homeless man with schizophrenia, who is playing a violin when Lopez introduces himself. During the conversation that follows, Lopez learns that Ayers once attended Juilliard.

Curious as to how a former student of such a prestigious school ended up on the streets, Lopez contacts Juilliard but learns that no record of Ayers graduating from it exists. Though at first figuring a man with schizophrenia who's talented with a violin isn't worth his time, Lopez soon realizes that he has no better story to write about. Luckily, he soon learns that Ayers did attend Juilliard, but dropped out after two years.

Finding Ayers the next day, Lopez says he wants to write about him. Ayers doesn't appear to be paying attention. Getting nowhere, Lopez finds and contacts Ayers' sister (Lisa Gay Hamilton), who gives the columnist the information he needs: Ayers was once a child prodigy with the cello, until he began displaying symptoms of schizophrenia at Juilliard. Unable to handle the voices, Ayers dropped out and ended up on the streets due to the delusion that his sister wanted to kill him. Without a cello, he has resorted to playing a two-string violin.

Lopez writes his article. One reader is so touched, she sends him a cello for Ayers. Lopez brings it to him and Ayers is shown to be just as proficient as with a violin. Unfortunately, his tendency to wander puts both Ayers and the cello in danger, so Lopez talks him into leaving it at a shelter, located in a neighborhood of homeless people. Ayers is later seen playing for the homeless.

A concerned Lopez tries to get a doctor he knows (Nelsan Ellis) to help. He also tries to talk Ayers into getting an apartment, but Ayers refuses. After seeing a reaction to music played at an opera house, Lopez persuades another friend, Graham (Tom Hollander), a cellist, to rehabilitate Ayers through music. The lessons go well, though Ayers is shown to be getting a little too attached to Lopez, much to the latter's annoyance. Lopez eventually talks Ayers into moving into an apartment by threatening to abandon him.

Lopez's article on Ayers gains so much fame, Ayers is given the chance to perform a recital. Sadly, he loses his temper, attacks Graham and leaves. This convinces Lopez's doctor friend to get Ayers help. But when Ayers learns what Lopez is up to, he throws Lopez out of his apartment and threatens to kill him.

While speaking with Mary, Lopez realizes that not only has he changed Ayers' life, Ayers has changed him. Determined to make amends, Lopez brings Ayers' sister to L.A. for a visit. Ayers and Lopez make up. Later, while all watch an orchestra, Lopez ponders how beneficial their friendship has been. Ayers still hears voices, but at least he no longer lives on the streets. In addition, Ayers has helped Lopez's relationship with his own family.

It is revealed in the end that Ayers is still a member of the LAMP Community, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization that seeks to help people living with severe mental illness, and that Lopez is learning how to play the guitar.

Cast

Production

The Soloist, directed by Joe Wright, was written by Susannah Grant, based on a series of columns^[4] written by Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez, who chronicled the plight of Nathaniel Ayers, Jr., a musician with schizophrenia, and eventually was chronicled in Lopez' book, The Soloist.^[5] Grant drew elements of the story from a book written by Lopez, which was published in the spring of 2008.^[6] The film was budgeted at $60 million, twice the budget amount of Wright's previous film, Atonement.^[7] Production began in January 2008 and was filmed mostly in Los Angeles,^[5] with some scenes shot in Cleveland.

Reception

Box office

On its opening weekend, the film opened #4 behind Fighting, 17 Again, and Obsessed, grossing $9,715,000 in 2,024 theaters with a $4,800 average per theater.^[8] The film went on to only recover about half of its total budget bringing in $31,720,158. This was blamed on the film's initial release date being postponed, as well as the film's release coming one week before the 2009 summer movie season.

Critical reaction

The film received positive to mixed reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a rating 56%, based on 200 reviews, with an average score of 5.9/10. The site's consensus reads, "Though it features strong performances by its lead players, a lack of narrative focus prevents The Soloist from hitting its mark."^[9] At Metacritic the film received an average score of 61 out of 100, based on 33 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".^[10]

Reviewers generally praise the performances by Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx, but comment on the film's lack of narrative focus in attempting to tell a convincing or engaging story due to the somewhat "uneven" direction by director Joe Wright.^[11] Many felt that the project was a bit of a "mismatch" for Wright, and felt it was one of his weakest films to date, following the success of his adaptations of Pride & Prejudice and Atonement.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack to The Soloist was released on April 21, 2009.

See also

• White savior narrative in film

Notes

References

• Thompson, Anne. "Wright's 'Soloist' won't play holiday", Variety, October 19, 2008.

External links

Wikiquote has quotations related to: The Soloist

• Official website
• The Soloist at the Internet Movie Database
• The Soloist at Rotten Tomatoes
• The Soloist at Box Office Mojo
• The Soloist at AllMovie
• Nathaniel Ayers Performs July 2009 NAMI Convention