Movie Review: The Tender Bar Is A Nostalgic Nod To 90s Classics
Watching The Tender Bar, I kept on thinking of 90s films about the difficulties of raising a “boy to be a man.” The nostalgic charm of Tender Bar, based on J.R. Moehringer memoir and directed by George Clooney, is what keeps the audience invested in Charlie’s penchant to both screw and save his life via the mistakes of his parents. Out December 17, on Prime, if C’MON C’MON was an art film on raising adolescence, The Tender Bar was your typical, TBS watch and…. that is why I liked it, as well.
I said it with Ghostbusters: Afterlife and I say it with The Tender Bar; some formulas are not about changing in recipe as much as chefs. The Tender Bar feels like a dramatic re-telling of The Sandlot or Uncle Buck, except Ben Affleck is the crazy uncle and Tye Sheridan’s J.R. is the kid trying to find his talent and heal from his daddy issues. You’ve seen this film before, but that is because it works. For a moment, an average, poor kid’s life is treated as cinematic, and Charlie is oddly relatable because he feels unlike a star, but also feels he must become one to amend for the darkness of his parents.
The hardest part about conquering generational trauma is realizing that it exists and approaching it with compassion. In essence, don’t judge your parents or your grandparents for not healing the wounds they inherited. Instead, motivate yourself to be “surgery” the family needs. In this perspective, Ben Affleck SHINES as the charming, loyal uncle that fathers Charlie with a mutual balance of realism and idealism. From the beginning, he spots our little Charles IS NOT an athlete, but, more importantly, he is not his vicious, alcoholic dad (Max Martini). He pushes the boy, played by (Daniel Ranieri), to be smart, cultured, and determined to cultivate a skill that contributes to this world like, writing. Christopher Lloyd as J.R.’s grandfather and Lily Rabe as his mom etch out a beautiful dynamic, particularly because most “old, nostalgic” films on growing up in the 70s or 80s have a sense of machismo; grumpy men trying to toughen “cry-baby boys.” Yet, The Tender Bar is special because it is tender and kindly supportive.
As a lead, Sheridan is perfect as J.R. because he is the kindest, most intelligent screw-up you will ever meet, which feels appropriate for any twenty-sewomthing kid in any era. Most of us trying to do better and land in a more economically friendly place than our prior generations. The pressure to not only be richer but more reputable and respected by society confounds Charlie/ us because …. we still are human. Yes, we are talented and afforded more opportunities than prior generations. Yet, we have crushes that do not respond to us, internships that promise to become jobs but do not, and friends that keeps us in line while frustrating us with their ability to move up. Charlie is a bright light suffering the pangs of his mother’s pain caused by his father’s abuse, and while he is praised for being a “genius” figuring out how to live your best life will leave anyone feeling dumb.
The Tender Bar felt like a simple, feel-good movie. It was not innovative nor trying to cinematic beyond its reflections of what it is to inspire yourself enough to live an inspiring life. Like any writer/ person, we struggle to see ourselves as the lead our own life’s narrative. Yet, like J.R., if we pick up the pen, we can write a great memoir.
