The Soloist (2009)

Somehow “The Soloist” got bumped from an Oscar-contender winter 2008 release to a ho-hum spring 2009 release. It’s a shame, even though the film (inspired by a true story) doesn’t really hit the Oscar caliber mark that its creators were hoping for. But it’s damn good, despite some sappy heart-yanking moments where two soaring birds represent … the soaring sprits of two men. (Ugh!)

The unstoppable Robert Downey Jr. plays “Los Angeles Times” columnist Steve Lopez, who stumbles upon a homeless schizophrenic (Jamie Foxx) playing a two-string violin with the grace of God Himself. Lopez wants to help this street musician, but the questions – Can he truly be helped? Does he want help? – roar loudly. Forget the sap and the creaky ending (director Joe Wright made the same mistake in his “Atonement”), this is an actor’s film. Downey delivers.

As the talented Nathaniel, Foxx again fires on all cylinders, especially in flashback scenes depicting his crumbling while a student. The film wrecks the theory put forth by some (such as Rush Limbaugh) that the poor and homeless are lazy and need only “get a job.” Bastards.

Instead, “Soloist” suggests (despite a fumble or two) that the homelessness is a far more complicated problem than any newspaper writer, activist or movie can ever hope to solve. B