Steve Lopez, a deeply-flawed newspaper columnist, stumbles across a homeless cello prodigy named Nathaniel Ayers, and is so emotionally touched by the dexterous talents of the street-sleeping musician that he not only writes about him but endeavours to help. Directed by Atonement’s Joe Wright and based on a true story, The Soloist follows their burgeoning, complicated friendship.

The two main protagonists, Lopez and Ayers are played by Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx respectively, and the display of these acting heavyweights is engrossing; there are spells where their performances carry the film, noticeably in places where the plot stutters somewhat.

At times this is a film as schizophrenic as its title character, unsure of its central narrative. Is it psychological exploration? Personal drama? Triumph-over-adversity parable? Social realism? Comment on the media? Director Wright fails to hammer home what he wants the audience to take away from the cinema, and as a result The Soloist, while magnificently written, performed and presented, lacks the key ingredient necessary for a truly great film; a focused message.

The sensitivity with which the film deals with the anguish of mental illness is remarkably moving and reminiscent of the 1996 classic Shine. For my money though, the movie is at its most powerful when exploring the nature of homelessness. This could be because I’m a bleeding heart liberal but nevertheless, the empathy with which this issue is addressed is keenly felt and should prove to be the most long-lasting impact of the movie.

While in no way preachy, the cinematography does occasionally lapse into unbearable self-indulgence. One particular sequence where the liberating power of Ayers’ playing is represented by the flight of birds above the city is positively nauseating, but thankfully this is a rare aberration is what is otherwise an earnestly told story short on the usual saccharin, over-the-top moments that are rife in other American drama films.

The first ‘timejump’ in the movie, back to Ayers’ childhood, jars as it comes from nowhere. Granted, it was undoubtedly conceived as necessary to explain his dramatic fall from gifted musical prodigy to psychologically-damaged homeless man, but it is not signposted adequately and impinges on the overall story. This is a minor fault but indicative of the generally stilted way in which the film is put together. When the credits roll, there is an overwhelming sense that if the movie had been properly produced, directed and edited, then we would be talking about a classic rather than a merely admirable movie.

Nonetheless, The Soloist is an extraordinary personal story that is only slightly let down by the telling.

- Sebastian Clare