Plot: Fifty-seven year old Otis Blake - better known by his stage name Bad Blake - is a minor legend as a country & western singer. But that minor legend status only allows him currently to perform in not even B-rate venues such as bowling alleys, although he does have a standing gig to perform at his friend Wayne Kramer's bar in Houston. Bad is an overweight, chain-smoking alcoholic. He is informed by a doctor that his self-destructive lifestyle will send him to an early grave. This self-destructive behavior has also led to several failed marriages and a grown son who he has not seen since he was aged four and whose current whereabouts Bad does not know. While performing in Santa Fe, Bad meets newspaper journalist Jean Craddock, who wants to do a piece on him for her newspaper. Despite the differences in their ages, Jean and Bad begin a relationship. Jean and her four year old son Buddy are the closest thing Bad has had to a family in quite some time. Bad's professional career also takes a turn when he reconnects with a more famous former touring partner named Tommy Sweet, who wants Bad to write some songs for him. What looks to be both a promising professional and personal future for Bad may be jeopardized by his long standing self-destructive lifestyle.
Alternative Plot: With too many years of hazy days and boozy nights,former country-music legend Bad Blake (Jeff Bridges) is reduced to playing dives and bowling alleys. In town for his latest gig, Blake meets Jean Craddock (Maggie Gyllenhaal), a sympathetic reporter who has come to do a story on him. He unexpectedly warms to her and a romance begins, then the singer finds himself at a crossroads that may threaten his last shot at happiness.
Rate this movie!