Allan Watched "Coal Miner's Daughter"
This is an entry from the Allan Watches Movies: Best Picture Project, where Allan will rewatch nominated movies from each year and choose who actually should have won. Coal Miner’s Daughter (1980) had seven Academy Awards nominations, including Best Picture.
A vibrant and well-made biographical musical, Coal Miner’s Daughter is a great look at the life of country-music legend Loretta Lynn, despite beginning far better than it ends.
Gut Feeling Review
Coal Miner’s Daughter is such an interesting biography, mainly, because it is actually at its best when the world was being built and we were learning the origins of how Lynn came from poverty to become one of America’s greatest stars, and sort of lulls once she takes off for stardom. Sissy Spacek (Carrie, Missing, The River) is tremendous in her Best Actress-winning portrayal of Loretta Lynn, and carries the movie beautifully. Her ability to show every side of Lynn is a marvel to watch, bringing her from an innocent and clueless 13-year-old, to a young mother turning into a star, and finally into a veteran music hero dealing with the pains of a tireless pursuit of greatness.
A young Tommy Lee Jones is great as Lynn’s husband Doolittle, brilliantly bringing to a life a romance that lives in country music folklore. Doo has about three gears: ambitiously loving, drunk and dangerous, and depressed. Jones doesn’t expand too far passed these three versions of Doo, but his ability to play off the soft innocence Spacek brings to Lynn is what makes the first hour of this movie so memorable and powerful.
Despite how compelling the first hour or so is, the film loses a ton of steam when Lynn transforms into the star we know. The musical scenes of her on the road are fine, but kind of a snooze, and the movie does not ride its early momentum to its rather sudden and uneventful end. Part of the problem is that we see Loretta and Doo fight then makeup about 3 too many times, creating a very repetitive spiral at the beginning of the third act. What keeps Coal Miner’s Daughter from being one of the great musicals or bio-pics is that lack of punch in the final third, but overall it is still a joy to watch Spacek at her best from beginning to end.
Random Thoughts
I liked the Patsy Cline scenes a lot, but considering how heavy of a moment her death was in Lynn’s life and the impact it had in the music world, it felt a little hallow and glanced over.
Beverly D’Angelo (Hair, American History) does a very nice job portraying Cline, a groundbreaking country artist who died tragically and too soon. I can’t help but feel Cline’s presence in the movie just wasn’t enough.
The great Levon Helm steps away from the drums and mic to give a great performance as Lynn’s father. We have seen many rough and tough rural fathers in film, but his gentle approach to a coal miner watching his hardly-teen-aged daughter get married to a wild young man adds a genuine sweetness which could have seemed cliché.
The movie ends with so many title drops!
I could watch Tommy Lee Jones auction off pies for hours.
It took me a whole day to figure out who Sissy Spacek looks like, and it’s Elizabeth Olsen! I am not wrong and will not be taking questions on this.
Jones delivery of the word “Wet” is the greatest delivery of that word in film history.
This was the seventh highest grossing film on 1980.
The film was nominated for seven Academy Awards, but Spacek’s victory (with Loretta Lynn in attendance!) was its only victory.
Quick Hits
How many times have I seen this movie?
First time!
Where was I watching it?
In my office while drinking my fifth coffee during a quarantined Thursday.
Favorite trivia about the movie
Loretta Lynn chose Spacek for the role herself, based off of a photo she saw of her (not knowing she was Carrie in Carrie). Spacek was hesitant, but Lynn prematurely announced that Spacek was going to play the role on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, so she eventually went with it.
Favorite part
When Lynn’s mother realized she is pregnant before everyone else did. Super funny and great writing.
Least favorite part
The last scene of dialog was just kind of pointless.
Would I recommend this movie?
I would! Particularly if you are a country music fan.
So What Does Allan Give It?
One Gold Thumbs Up! Overall, a score of 73. A really fun movie that leaves a little too much to be desired down the stretch. But Sissy Spacek is a pure delight.
