Sunday, February 19, 2017

80's Month Day 19: Coal Miner's Daughter


Released in 1980, Coal Miner's Daughter is a biopic about the life of country singer Loretta Lynn and is based on Lynn's autobiography. So, my guess is that the film holds pretty true to actual events.
Sissy Spacek stars as Loretta Lynn, she turns in a solid performance which lead to her winning the Academy Award for Best Actress. Alongside Spacek is Tommy Lee Jones as Doolittle Lynn, Loretta's husband who is several years older than her. Jones is pretty good in the movie, though I wouldn't say it's his best performance. 

The film starts of with a look at Lynn's humble beginnings, growing up poor in rural Kentucky. By her mid-teenage years Loretta marries Doolittle Lynn and before long she's the mother of several children. Doolittle urges his wife to sing at a local honky-tonk, and before long the two are traveling all around with Loretta singing in bars by night and visiting radio stations during the day promoting her record. Before long Loretta is a country music star, becoming good friends with Patsy Cline (played by Beverly D'Angelo) and regularly performing at the Grand Ole Opry. All along the way, Loretta and Doolittle go through numerous ups and downs, and the two have a less than ideal relationship.

It's a pretty good movie and is entertaining throughout.
I give it a 3.5 out of 5.


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