In March of 1943, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma! opened on Broadway and stood to become the biggest opening ever on Broadway. This was the first of many collaborations of many for Oscar Hammerstein II and Richard Rodgers; however, there is one man’s life who precedes this iconic artistic collaboration. Lorenz Hart - Richard Rodgers’ creative partner before Oscar Hammerstein II - an alcoholic depressive sits on the fallout of this creative partnership at New York bar Sardi’s waxing poetic about his bitter, but sentimental feelings on the legendary Broadway opening. Richard Linklater presents Blue Moon as a bottle movie taking place in real time inside the iconic bar in New York’s theater district, and playing Hart is one of Linklater’s career long collaborators, Ethan Hawke, who both deliver an absolutely essential entry for both of their bodies of work. 

 

Linklater is no stranger to this sort of narrative device; almost making this feel like a spiritual sibling to his entries of The Before Trilogy. The framing device of Sardi’s, a restaurant known for putting pictures of famous patrons drawn faces on the wall makes for incredible and fun scenery as we follow Hart making his way around this restaurant as if it’s his second home. Hawke’s performance as Hart is grand, but carries a deep melancholic cut. It’s a man struggling to sew his heart together as he’s slowly finding out he’s being left behind. It’s a deeply sad, but also wildly hilarious performance.

 

Joining him in the supporting cast are some great players who surprise with the limited amount of material they have. Margaret Qualley plays Elizabeth Weiland, a young college student half of Harts’ age whom he has a particular fascination towards. Andrew Scott plays Richard Rodgers, Harts’ former creative partner who is hitting the biggest break in Broadway history. Then you have Bobby Cannavale as Eddie, the Sardi’s bartender. These three performances are all wonderful adding their unique flavor to the film as bittersweet as they are.

 

As Hart journeys through the night, he clashes with other theater and literary giants, some older, some younger. As we journey through the night with him, Hart desperately attempts to hold a place in the artistic landscape he loves so much, but is slowly accepting that it’s leaving him behind. Blue Moon serves as an investigation on how Hart lost himself to alcoholism after the fallout of his collaborations with Rodgers while also noting that Hart's influence on today’s artistic landscape is unmistakable. 

 

Blue Moon could also be seen as a celebration of the countless collaborations Richard Linklater and Ethan Hawke have done together. With filmography expanding over 30 years with each other, this feels like one of the more sentimental collaborations between the two. It's such an emotionally dense and heavy entry for both Hawke and Linklater, however, this becomes an absolute essential for their respective bodies of work; Ethan Hawke may even be giving his greatest performance yet here. Blue Moon is a bittersweet, melancholic punch to the gut that's also a lively celebration of collaboration and artistry.