A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

Shainee Gabel

Writers (WGA):

Ronald Everett Capps (novel)
Shainee Gabel (screenplay)

Release Date:

21 January 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama

Tagline:

The heart is a lonely hunter.

Plot:

A headstrong young woman returns to New Orleans after the death of her estranged mother.

Plot Keywords:

Funeral | Book | Singer | Female Bartender | Alcoholic Father

Awards:

Nominated for Golden Globe.

Cast

John Travolta	...	Bobby Long
Scarlett Johansson	...	Pursy Will
Gabriel Macht	...	Lawson Pines
Deborah Kara Unger	...	Georgianna
Dane Rhodes	...	Cecil
David Jensen	...	Junior
Clayne Crawford	...	Lee
Walter Breaux	...	Ray
Sonny Shroyer	...	Earl
Carol Sutton	...	Ruthie
Warren Kole	...	Sean (as Warren Blosjo)
Bernard Johnson	...	Tiny
Gina 'Ginger' Bernal	...	Waitress
Douglas M. Griffin	...	Man #1 (as Douglas Griffin)
Earl Maddox	...	Man #2

MPAA:

Rated R for language including some sexual references.

Runtime:

119 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Germany:6 | Brazil:16 | Malaysia:18SX | USA:R (certificate #41073) | Singapore:M18 (re-rating) (cut) | Singapore:NC-16 (original rating) (uncut) | USA:TV-MA (cable rating) | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Netherlands:AL | Norway:A | Sweden:7

Filming Locations:

New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

Company:

Destination Films

Trivia:

Writer/director Shainee Gabel adapted the screenplay from the previously unpublished novel "Off Magazine Street" by Ronald Everett Capps. Capps' son, Grayson Capps, appears in the film and contributed six songs to its soundtrack.

Goofs:

Continuity: The ship disappears out of the screen too quickly. While Bobby and Lawson are talking on the bank of the river, a barge goes across the screen. A close-up comes in for the men, but when it pulls back again, the barge is completely gone. It was a continual scene, with one conversation, but there was nowhere near enough time for the slow moving barge to get out of sight.

Quotes:

Lawson Pines: [Carrying in a tree] Ho ho ho!
Bobby Long: Where did you get that?
Lawson Pines: Fell off the back of a truck.
Bobby Long: Like hell it did.
Lawson Pines: All right, maybe it was a volvo.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 62nd Annual Golden Globe Awards (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Santa Claus Santa Claus

Terms of Endearment in a Trailer Park

I really liked this movie. It is about (among other things) the forgiveness needed to be part of a family and people who drink beer for breakfast, a perfect combination. I was expecting to be bored and was happy to be entertained. A few good laughs, a few moments close to tears, some lovely scenery, and it made me think. What more can you ask for in a movie? The surprise ending seemed to me to be unimportant as so many things were resolved before. John Travolta was great as Bobby Long. I do have a question, does anyone beside me assume that Lawson Pines and Bobby Long were gay? It is New Orleans after all. (not that there is anything wrong with that). They should release this movie to more theaters.