Low Down

Low Down is a 2014 American biopic directed by Jeff Preiss and based on the memoirs written by Amy-Jo Albany (portrayed by Elle Fanning) about her father, famed jazz pianist Joe Albany (portrayed by John Hawkes), and his struggles with drug addiction.[2]

Low Down
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJeff Preiss
Produced byAlbert Berger
Written byTopper Lilien
Amy-Jo Albany
StarringJohn Hawkes
Elle Fanning
Lena Headey
Glenn Close
Flea
Taryn Manning
Peter Dinklage
Tim Daly
Music byOhad Talmor
CinematographyChristopher Blauvelt
Edited byMichael Saia
Production
company
Bona Fide Productions
Distributed byOscilloscope Laboratories
Release date
  • January 19, 2014 (2014-01-19) (Sundance)
  • October 24, 2014 (2014-10-24)
Running time
120 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$54,051[1]

The film was executive produced by Anthony Kiedis and Flea (who also co-stars in the film) of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

The film premiered in competition at 2014 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2014.[3] It won the "Cinematography Award: U.S. Dramatic" at the festival.[4]

Plot summary

Joe Albany was an accomplished jazz pianist during the 1960s through the 1980s, performing with the likes of Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, and Charles Mingus before his descent into heroin addiction. The film tells the story of Albany's life from the perspective of his daughter, Amy-Jo Albany, a frequent witness to his drug use (and related legal trouble) as well as his passion for music.[5]

Cast

Production

Actor Mark Ruffalo was originally cast as Joe Albany in 2011 but was forced to back out due to scheduling issues and production being delayed.[6]

Release

The film made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2014, winning an award for Best Cinematography. It also won Best Film at the New Hampshire Film Festival in 2014. The first official trailer was released on September 18, 2014.[7] The film opened to a limited release on October 24, 2014 in New York City and October 31, 2014 in Los Angeles.[8]

Reception

Low Down was met with mixed reviews. Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes sampled 47 critics' reviews, 24 positive and 23 negative, bringing the score to 51%, averaging 5.68/10. The film's consensus reads: "Rich in mood and on-screen talent but lacking in narrative depth, Low Down tells an oft-told tale with a troubling dearth of imagination."[9] Metacritic, another review aggregator, gives the film 58 out of 100 based on reviews from 21 critics (six of them positive, thirteen mixed, and two negative), with its general agreement being "mixed or average reviews."[10]

Matt Zoller Seitz, writing for RogerEbert.com, gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it "a very good jazz movie and a very good heroin movie,"[11] while Rex Reed described Elle Fanning's performance as "heartbreaking."[12] George Varga of the San Diego Union-Tribune deemed Low Down "a grimly gripping movie"[13] but was less effusive than Seitz, giving it two-and-a-half stars.

David Edelstein, in Vulture, praised the performances by Hawkes, Fanning, and much of the supporting cast, but felt that the film was "not as entertaining as" the book on which it was based: "The weakness of Low Down is that it misses the wry tone and scruffy, eccentrically funny parts of [Amy-Jo] Albany’s memoir."[14]

References
  1. "Low Down (2014)". Box Office Mojo.
  2. Chris O'Falt. "Sundance Preview: John Hawkes Stars as a Heroin-Addicted Jazz Pianist in 'Low Down'". The Hollywood Reporter.
  3. "Sundance 2014: U.S. Dramatic Competition". IndieWire. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
  4. "'Whiplash' Owns the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Awards Netting Two Top Prizes". IndieWire. Retrieved April 12, 2014.
  5. "Sundance 2014: Elle Fanning, Glenn Close on 'Low Down'". Entertainment Weekly.
  6. "John Hawkes to Star in Joe Albany Biopic LOW DOWN". Collider.
  7. "'Low Down' Trailer". Yahoo!. 18 September 2014.
  8. "Up and Comers - Watch: Elle Fanning in First 'Low Down' Trailer". upandcomers.net.
  9. "Low Down (2014)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved May 21, 2019.
  10. "Low Down". Metacritic. Retrieved August 22, 2015.
  11. "Low Down (2014)". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  12. "Low Down (2014)". Observer. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  13. "Low Down (2014)". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  14. "Low Down (2014)". Vulture. Vox Media, Inc. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
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