A talented young male country singer is taken under wing by a seasoned older country star after the two have an affair while she's in rehab, but life on the road grows complex when his ex-girlfriend also joins the tour.
Reviews
Variety
Justin Chang
“A tabloid-torn backstage soap opera is rendered with considerable empathy and emotional complexity in "Country Strong." Though conceived as a singing-acting showcase for Gwyneth Paltrow, tracing the downward spiral of a Nashville superstar who's lately produced fewer hits than headlines, this second feature from "The Greatest" writer-director Shana Feste is that rare ensemble piece in which all four principals are not only compellingly drawn but handled with an astute sense of dramatic balance. Buoyed by an expectedly fine soundtrack”
21/12/2010
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The Los Angeles Times
Betsy Sharkey
“What helps elevate "Country Strong" when the music stops is the strength of the performances.”
22/12/2010
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Total Film
Total Film
“Trouble is, the concert performances are the most exciting things on screen. The rest of the film is devoted to clunky discussions of feelings”
15/03/2011
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The Observer
Philip French
“The movie has its moments, but the characters are fuzzy around the edges.”
27/03/2011
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The Daily Telegraph
Tim Robey
“The kindest thing that can be said for Shana Feste’s film is that it fails quite endearingly.”
24/03/2011
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The Financial Times
Nigel Andrews
“I hated, loved, hated the movie. In that order. The start and end are awful; the middle so daft you want to hug it.”
24/03/2011
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The Independent
Anthony Quinn
“The good news is that Paltrow can sing; the bad news is the mawkish and one-paced drama she's playing in.”
25/03/2011
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The New York Times
Manohla Dargis
“The corn is as high as a mechanical bull’s eye in “Country Strong,” a runny-mascara melodrama about a country-western superstar warbling, weeping and wailing her way back from another stint in rehab to the glare of the stage.”
06/01/2011
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The Daily Mail
Chris Tookey
“This is a cheesy soap opera that dearly wants to be a country and western All About Eve. The songs aren’t too bad; the dialogue is.”
27/03/2011
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The Guardian
Peter Bradshaw
“...mindblowingly mawkish and self-indulgent country-music movie. Watching it is like drinking a mix of Texan corn syrup and Dolly Parton hair toner.”
24/03/2011
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Time Out
Cath Clarke
“Paltrow gives it her best but is so conspicuously doing country. We’re meant to believe she has spent half her life staring into a vodka bottle, but she glows like she’s just stepped out of a yoga retreat. The actors sing for real: cheesy-as-hell songs which give the whole thing a whiff of vanity. ”
24/03/2011
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The Times
Wendy Ide
“Soapy, sentimental and as corny as country music at its most saccharine and lachrymose, this movie is a bit like Crazy Heart with all the interesting, rough edges smoothed over.”
25/03/2011
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The Sunday Times
Jonathan Dean
“Paltrow is good at crying, but, frankly, a home movie with Chris would have made for a better musical.”
27/03/2011
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