Low Down

{{Infobox film

| name = Low Down

| image = Low Down poster.png

| caption = Theatrical release poster

| director = Jeff Preiss

| producer = Albert Berger

| writer = Topper Lilien
Amy-Jo Albany

| starring = John Hawkes
Elle Fanning
Lena Headey
Flea
Caleb Landry Jones
Peter Dinklage
Glenn Close

| music = Ohad Talmor

| cinematography = Christopher Blauvelt

| editing = Michael Saia

| studio = Bona Fide Productions

| distributor = Oscilloscope Laboratories

| released = {{Film date|2014|01|19|Sundance|2014|10|24}}

| runtime = 120 minutes

| country = United States

| language = English

| budget =

| gross = $54,051{{cite web|url=http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=lowdown.htm|title=Low Down (2014)|website=Box Office Mojo}}

}}

Low Down is a 2014 American biopic directed by Jeff Preiss and based on the memoirs written by Amy-Jo Albany (portrayed by Elle Fanning) about her father, famed jazz pianist Joe Albany (portrayed by John Hawkes), and his struggles with drug addiction.{{cite web |author=O'Falt |first=Chris |date=January 16, 2014 |title=Sundance Preview: John Hawkes Stars as a Heroin-Addicted Jazz Pianist in 'Low Down' |url=http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/sundance-preview-john-hawkes-stars-671646 |work=The Hollywood Reporter}}

The film was executive produced by Anthony Kiedis and Flea (who also co-stars in the film) of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

The film premiered in competition at 2014 Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2014.{{cite web |date=January 10, 2014 |title=Sundance 2014: U.S. Dramatic Competition |url=http://www.indiewire.com/article/sundance-2014-us-dramatic-competition |accessdate=April 18, 2014 |website=IndieWire}} It won the "Cinematography Award: U.S. Dramatic" at the festival.{{cite web |last=Smith |first=Nigel M. |date=January 25, 2014 |title='Whiplash' Owns the 2014 Sundance Film Festival Awards Netting Two Top Prizes |url=http://www.indiewire.com/article/the-2014-sundance-film-festival-winners-as-they-come-in |accessdate=April 12, 2014 |website=IndieWire}}

Plot summary

Joe Albany was an accomplished jazz pianist during the 1960s through the 1980s, performing with the likes of Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, and Charles Mingus before his descent into heroin addiction. The film tells the story of Albany's life from the perspective of his daughter, Amy-Jo Albany, a frequent witness to his drug use (and related legal trouble) as well as his passion for music.{{cite magazine|url=http://insidemovies.ew.com/2014/01/21/sundance-2014-low-down/|title=Sundance 2014: Elle Fanning, Glenn Close on 'Low Down' |date=January 21, 2014 |magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}

Cast

John Hawkes as Joe Albany
Elle Fanning as Amy-Jo Albany
Lena Headey as Sheila Albany
Glenn Close as Gram
Flea as Hobbs
Caleb Landry Jones as Cole
Taryn Manning as Colleen
Peter Dinklage as Alain
Billy Drago as Lew
Burn Gorman as Parole Officer Wiggenhern
Tim Daly as Dalton
Linda Wang as Chinese Woman
Rain Phoenix as Kitty
Wiley Pickett as Gentleman Cowboy

Production

Actor Mark Ruffalo was originally cast as Joe Albany in 2011 but was forced to back out due to scheduling issues and production being delayed.{{cite web |last=Chitwood |first=Adam |date=November 12, 2012 |title=John Hawkes to Star in Joe Albany Biopic LOW DOWN |url=http://collider.com/john-hawkes-low-down/ |work=Collider}}

Release

The film made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2014, winning an award for Best Cinematography.{{Cite web |date=January 26, 2014 |title=2014 Sundance Film Festival Announces Feature Film Awards |url=https://www.sundance.org/blogs/news/2014-sundance-film-festival-announces-feature-film-awards/ |access-date=January 15, 2023 |website=sundance.org |language=en-US}} It also won Best Film at the New Hampshire Film Festival in 2014.{{Cite news |last=Cipriani |first=Casey |date=October 20, 2014 |title='Low Down' and 'E-TEAM' Take Home Top Prizes from New Hampshire Film Festival |work=IndieWire |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2014/10/low-down-and-e-team-take-home-top-prizes-from-new-hampshire-film-festival-68927/ |access-date=January 15, 2023}} The first official trailer was released on September 18, 2014.{{cite web |date=18 September 2014 |title='Low Down' Trailer |url=https://movies.yahoo.com/video/low-down-trailer-151240469.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111220509/https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/video/low-down-trailer-151240469.html |archive-date=November 11, 2020 |website=Yahoo!}} The film opened to a limited release on October 24, 2014 in New York City and October 31, 2014 in Los Angeles.{{cite web |last=Espina |first=Alfonso |date=September 19, 2014 |title=Watch: Elle Fanning Explores 1970s Jazz Scene With Joe Albany in 'Low Down' Trailer |url=http://upandcomers.net/2014/09/19/watch-elle-fanning-first-low-trailer/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141014034138/http://upandcomers.net/2014/09/19/watch-elle-fanning-first-low-trailer/ |archive-date=October 14, 2014 |access-date=January 15, 2023 |work=upandcomers.net}}

Reception

Low Down was met with mixed reviews. Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes sampled 50 critics' reviews, 25 positive and 25 negative, bringing the score to 50%, averaging 5.7/10. The film's consensus reads: "Rich in mood and on-screen talent but lacking in narrative depth, Low Down tells an oft-told tale with a troubling dearth of imagination."{{cite web|url=http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/low_down_2014/|title=Low Down (2014)|work=Rotten Tomatoes|accessdate=May 21, 2019}} Metacritic, another review aggregator, gives the film 58 out of 100 based on reviews from 21 critics (six of them positive, thirteen mixed, and two negative), with its general agreement being "mixed or average" reviews.{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/movie/low-down |title=Low Down |publisher=Metacritic |accessdate=August 22, 2015}}

Matt Zoller Seitz, writing for RogerEbert.com, gave the film three-and-a-half stars out of four, calling it "a very good jazz movie and a very good heroin movie,"{{cite web |last=Zoller Seitz |first=Matt |date=October 24, 2014 |title=Low Down (2014) |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/low-down-2014 |accessdate=July 22, 2020 |work=RogerEbert.com}} while Rex Reed described Elle Fanning's performance as "heartbreaking".{{cite web |last=Reed |first=Rex |date=October 22, 2014 |title=Portrait of an Artist: John Hawkes Plays a Tragic Jazz Pianist in 'Low Down' |url=https://observer.com/2014/10/portrait-of-an-artist-john-hawkes-plays-a-tragic-jazz-pianist-in-low-down/ |accessdate=July 22, 2020 |work=Observer}} George Varga of the San Diego Union-Tribune deemed Low Down "a grimly gripping movie"{{cite web |last=Varga |first=George |date=November 7, 2014 |title='Low Down' a grimly gripping movie |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/entertainment/movies/sdut-low-down-film-review-2014nov07-htmlstory.html |accessdate=July 22, 2020 |work=The San Diego Union-Tribune}} but was less effusive than Seitz, giving it two-and-a-half stars.

David Edelstein, in Vulture, praised the performances by Hawkes, Fanning, and much of the supporting cast, but felt that the film was "not as entertaining as" the book on which it was based: "The weakness of Low Down is that it misses the wry tone and scruffy, eccentrically funny parts of [Amy-Jo] Albany’s memoir."{{cite web |last=Edelstein |first=David |date=October 24, 2014 |title=John Hawkes Is Quietly Marvelous in Low Down |url=https://www.vulture.com/2014/10/movie-review-low-down.html |accessdate=July 22, 2020 |work=Vulture |publisher=Vox Media, Inc.}}