'Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere': Jeremy Allen White Shines in Otherwise Standard Biopic

PHOTO: 20th Century Studios

There are few artists as ubiquitous as Bruce Springsteen. For decades, he has steadily put out hit records and sold out stadiums, earning his place as one of the most legendary figures in the history of rock music. But beyond that, Springsteen has never been afraid to make the music that he wants to, prioritizing music as a means of artistic expression over profit and fame. Case in point, his landmark 1982 album, Nebraska, which represented a departure from the sound of his more popular work up to that point. This album was recorded on an early multitrack recorder in Springsteen’s home in Colts Neck, New Jersey, and had a lo-fi sound that took many by surprise. The album would go on to do well among critics and fans, and its esteem has only grown with time, with many hailing it as one of Springsteen’s finest works. 

The story of Nebraska and Springsteen’s mental state during its creation is given the big-screen treatment in Scott Cooper’s Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere. Taking inspiration from Warren Zanes’s book, Deliver Me from Nowhere, the film does its best to make Springsteen’s creative process cinematic and to show the difficulties he dealt with at the time. It’s a bold undertaking, but one that is handled in a safe, predictable way that feels in step with most music biopics. In a way, Springsteen feels antithetical to Nebraska, as it attempts to give audiences insight into Springsteen’s life and music in the most conventional packaging and methodology possible. 

Bruce Springsteen (Jeremy Allen White) is enjoying a wave of success following the release of his double-album, The River, which gave way to his first top-10 hit and a sold out tour. His record label is desperately wanting a new hit album, but Bruce has other plans. Aiming to cut costs and make something more stripped down, he gets a four-track recorder and creates a demo tape of seventeen songs. These songs are more somber and less polished, causing alarm bells to ring at the label. Meanwhile, Bruce reflects on his upbringing and his strained relationship with his father, Douglas (Stephen Graham), and sparks a relationship with Faye (Odessa Young), a single mother. Throughout all this, he tries to make sure his vision is realized and begins to better understand himself and his past. 

I appreciate that the film zeros in on a small section of Springsteen’s career as opposed to following the typical biopic formula, but a story like this needs a little more edge or experimentation to offer anything beyond surface level enjoyment. Nebraska is dark and kind of strange, but has left a long-lasting cultural impact. Deliver Me from Nowhere is rather standard in its approach, featuring familiar touchstones and overtly clear signposts in order to not alienate the viewer. It’s not like I was expecting or even wanting this film to be artsy or unconventional, but something that more closely matches the energy of Nebraska might have made this film more effective. 

I suppose I shouldn’t expect anything less from writer/director Scott Cooper, who has a tendency to make films that are mediocre at best. As evidenced in this film and in his breakthrough, Crazy Heart, he is good when it comes to the musical sections of the film, but struggles when it comes to the film’s more emotional aspects. This is a bit of an issue considering that much of the film is influenced by Bruce’s depression, which is dealt with rather broadly. The film does have a couple of moments that are touching, namely its final scene, but many others lack the resonance that Cooper is hoping to achieve. I empathized with Bruce at many points in the film, but this is due to Jeremy Allen White’s performance more than anything else. The film tends to alternate between hitting certain emotional beats too soft or too hard, leading it to have less of an impact than it hopes to have. I can’t deny that Cooper is at least making a decent effort to make this film strongly connect with viewers, but the end result is rather hit or miss.

It doesn’t help that the film feels a bit scatterbrained, as it tries to make the looser, more introspective nature of its story fit into a traditional film structure. It often feels as if the film is juggling plotlines, which one could argue is meant to be a parallel to Springsteen’s mental state, but it mainly just makes the film lack cohesion. The unfocused nature of the film is mainly due to the fact that it isn’t building to anything, leading to it feeling a bit anticlimactic. While watching the film, I couldn’t help but think of a recent biopic that I really liked, A Complete Unknown. That film also examines a segment of one of music’s biggest icons, but has a distinct structure to it that helps keep it together. Springsteen, on the other hand, just tries to fit the mold. This does the film a disservice, as it feels bound by traditional storytelling and has no room to try something new, much like Springsteen did with Nebraska.

Beyond that, there are two specific choices that the film makes that didn’t sit right with me, the first of which being the storyline involving Bruce and his love interest, Faye Romano. Faye isn’t a real person, and is instead a composite character of Springsteen’s romantic partners during the time the film is set. I can see why Cooper decided to create this character to help balance the film’s narrative, but the sections that deal with her and Bruce’s relationship are arguably the weakest. To be fair, White and Odessa Young are both good in these scenes, but the material they’re working with is subpar. Their relationship is kind of generic and doesn’t add much to the overall film. There are points to be made about Bruce’s treatment of Faye in the film, but they feel more like an afterthought. The plotline in general does give the film a bit of grounding, but it is largely inconsequential to the film as a whole. I am more than okay with creating a fictional character for a biopic if they serve a purpose, but Faye feels kind of thrown in out of obligation, and this shows in the film. 

The other choice has to do with the specific Springsteen songs that the film chooses to feature. I hesitate to call this an issue, as what the film does with Springsteen’s music is still very effective, but the selection of songs feels a little off from what the film is going for. The first performance we see in the film takes us to the last show of Springsteen’s The River tour, which features a rousing rendition of “Born to Run”. This gives us great insight into Bruce’s popularity and star power, and assures the audience that Jeremy Allen White has the goods. Another scene later in the film details the full band recording of “Born in the USA”, one of the tracks that Bruce laid down on the original demo tape for Nebraska. The scene is euphoric and well-done, but ends up feeling a bit odd in retrospect. Both of these scenes take up more time than most of the cuts from Nebraska the film features and overshadows the majority of them. I can’t help but be conflicted since both scenes work in the context of the film, but it feels as if there is more focus in those moments than the majority of the performances from Nebraska. For a film that is about the making of such a landmark record, it doesn’t seem to give it its due. Instead, it chooses to pay more attention to Bruce’s more recognizable songs, which isn’t the worst thing in the world, but it definitely pulls the focus away from the Nebraska tracks in a way that clashes with the rest of the film.

The actual creation of Nebraska is handled well, but it still feels a bit standard at times. It makes sure to lay in the influences that led Bruce to create this album, such as an extended shot of a book of short stories by Flannery O’Connor, a moment where Bruce catches Terrence Malick’s Badlands on TV and falls down a rabbit hole on the Starkweather murders, and scenes of him playing a couple of blues rock tunes with some buddies at the legendary venue, The Stone Pony. These moments aren’t the most subtle, but they aren’t too heavy handed either. At least they contribute some sense of meaning in Bruce’s creative process and mostly feel natural within the story. However, the scene that shows the inspiration for the song “Mansion on a Hill” is a little eye-roll inducing. The recording scenes are quite good, though, and capture the loneliness and spareness inherent in both the development of Nebraska and the record itself. The right idea is present with these scenes, but they are done exactly in the way you would expect. I can’t put too much blame on the film for going the tried and true route with this, and all of it still works fine for the most part, but I couldn’t help but want a little more from these sections of the film. 

If there’s any reason to see the film, it’s for Jeremy Allen White’s turn as The Boss himself. There are moments where I forgot I was watching White play Springsteen because he is so enmeshed in the character. His singing and guitar playing is excellent and feels so authentic, which is kind of rare in a musical biopic. He also does a great job of depicting Bruce’s depression in a way that feels genuine, and he truly captures his spirit as an artist. White never feels like he is imitating Bruce Springsteen and his ability to connect with him as a human adds layers to his performance. It isn’t as showy as most biopic performances tend to be, but that is a great thing in this case. White expertly taps into Bruce’s pensiveness, exhibiting a brooding quality that draws the viewer in. The role fits him like a glove, and I would be surprised if he doesn’t at least get nominated for an Oscar. 

Jeremy Strong’s performance kind of surprised me, as it feels more subdued than what I was expecting from him. Strong’s method approach to acting usually yields bold choices, but his take on Bruce’s manager and producer Jon Landau isn’t as abrasive or flashy as his other performances. There’s a warmth that Strong finds in the character, as he cares for Bruce and supports his vision for Nebraska. He is a good foil for what White is doing, demonstrating a cool head but unafraid to fight to make sure the record gets made on Springsteen’s terms. Strong is quite good on his own, but the scenes between him and White are some of the better parts of the film due to the rhythm that both actors find with each other. 

Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere has admirable aspirations, but it plays things a little too safe to fully live up to them. The musical sequences are quite good, and Jeremy Allen White’s turn as Springsteen is compelling, but the rest of the film is a bit of a mess. A lot of this stems from the script, but also the fact that it is trying to follow the typical biopic formula using a story that doesn’t suit it very well. It still hits some strong emotional beats, but it also feels like it underplays certain moments. Die-hard Springsteen fans will probably be more forgiving of this film, as it still captures the essence of The Boss and highlights the power of his music. I can admit that this is a fitting tribute to Bruce Springsteen, but it also feels too much like a standard music biopic to connect with me on a deeper level. Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere might lose focus from time to time and might not fully live up to its potential, but it is hard not to walk away from it with more respect for Bruce Springsteen as an artist and perhaps a few of his songs stuck in your head.

Rating: 2.5/5