Honkytonk Man

The Depression. Red Stovall is a country singer, an alcoholic and tubercular. He has been called to audition for the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, the one chance of his life and probably the last. He sets off with his nephew Whit. Along the way he sings and he coughs. Clint Eastwood directs and plays Red. His own son Kyle Eastwood plays Whit. Its place in Eastwood's filmography is particular. Audiences at the time wanted action from him; this is slow, sad and without a hero. He does not fire a weapon, saves nobody, and dies at the end. It did no business, and some critics found it weak. In France the reception was entirely different; French critics had been arguing for years that Eastwood should be taken seriously as a director, and Honkytonk Man became one of the films they pointed to most often. The music was recorded with real country musicians and Eastwood sang it himself. It is not a professional voice, and the choice suits the character. Who it is for: viewers who like slow American road films, country music, and Eastwood behind the camera. Who it is not for: the plot is very thin and the film tells you where it is going from the start. There is no surprise.