Roadie Movie Review

Title: Roadie

Starring: Ron Eldard (‘Super 8’), Bobby Cannavale, Jill Hennessy and Lois Smith (‘True Blood’)

Rarely does a screenwriter-director have the courage to create an authentic main character who longs for, and struggles to let go of, the past. But Michael Cuesta, who penned the new drama ‘Roadie’ with his brother Gerald, and served as the film’s director, created a believable protagonist in Jimmy Testagross, who’s afraid to admit his professional failures and be himself. ‘Roadie’ is the ultimate testament to people who want to do what makes them happy, but succumb to the pressure of pleasing their families and friends.

‘Roadie’ chronicles the immediate 24 hours after Jimmy (played by Ron Eldard) is fired from being the roadie for his childhood heroes, Blue Oyster Cult. Since he spent the past 20 years touring with the band, he has no where to go, with no other job prospects. So he returns to his childhood home in Forest Hills, New York, to visit his mother (portrayed by Lois Smith). Afraid to admit that he lost his job, and not wanting anyone thinking he’s a failure, Jimmy tells his mother and his neighbors that he’s actually Blue Oyster Cult’s manager, and has written several songs for them.

While deciding to look around the old neighborhood, he visits a local bar and crosses paths with his old high school nemesis, Randy Stevens (played by Bobby Cannavale), who he hasn’t seen since they graduated. Jimmy discovers that Randy is married to his high school girlfriend, Nikki (portrayed by Jill Hennessy). The three spend the night reconnecting over their high school memories and love of music. Jimmy comes to realize there’s more to life than living in the past, and only being concerned with what other people think of him.

While Cuesta didn’t include much of an external conflict between Jimmy and the rest of the characters, he created a true-to-life protagonist trying to deal with the struggles of everyday life. Jimmy lives in the past, as he longs to recreate his glory days of high school and when he was an appreciated member of Blue Oyster Cult’s crew. While touring with the band was what made him happy, to some degree he feels his profession isn’t admirable enough to the outside world. He believes the only way people will accept him is if they think he was the only in control of the band’s tour, and is a real leader to the group.

Even though Jimmy strives to better himself in his career to make himself happier and to garner more respect from everyone he knew from his childhood, Eldard effectively portrayed him as being afraid to try to achieve his dream. Jimmy’s perfectly willing to blame his father for smashing his dreams of becoming a musician when he was a child. As the actor has said, before Jimmy’s father died, he made the mistake of smashing his son’s guitar, which led Jimmy to leave their family home and never return. But once he does return home, and realizes that like him, Randy and Nikki aren’t extremely successful either, Jimmy comes to accept that not many people live out their childhood dreams. That realization also leads Jimmy to accept responsibility for his actions and not solely be concerned with what other people think of him.

Eldard completely embraced Jimmy’s lifestyle and attitude, and wasn’t afraid to put the research and time into getting into his character’s mindset. To help understand Jimmy’s motivations, personality and vulnerability, the actor toured with Blue Oyster Cult before he began shooting his scenes. This helped Eldard understad Jimmy’s hesitance to admit his professional failure to his mother and old classmates, which helped the audience connect with the character as well.

The actor was also easily able to get into the mindset of his character, due to the fact that Cuesta found real, pre-decorated locations for the film’s settings, including Jimmy’s mother’s house. The director did very little set dressings or production designs to the house, which gave an authentic feel to what Jimmy’s childhood was like growing up in Forest Hills.

Eldard also had a realistic, genuine working relationship with all of his co-workers. Having previously worked with Cannavale, the two, like Jimmy and Randy, knew the other’s personality and weren’t afraid to push each other to their emotional limits. While Eldard had never previously worked with Hennessy, the two still bonded over their character’s mutual love for rock music. Having released her own music, with the 2009 record ‘Ghost In M Head,’ the actress also understood Jimmy’s desire to succeed in the music business and make a name for himself. Eldard also built a believable relationship with Smith, as he respects her acclaimed acting career. This translated into Jimmy wanting to seek acceptance in his career from his mother.

‘Roadie’ doesn’t present a clear-cut antagonist in ‘Roadie,’ as many of the conflicts are based on Jimmy’s own need to succeed in his career and gain acceptance and respect from those around him. But Eldard perfectly portrayed Jimmy as someone determined to better himself, and move past his continuous need to live in his past. Audiences will surely relate to Jimmy’s questioning of what he should with his life, now that he has lost his job and can no longer live his childhood dream.

Written by: Karen Benardello