Elizabeth, a girl with a broken heart, leaves New York to start a journey of emotional healing around the States; she will work in several night cafes and bars and meet different characters, with whom she will get involved. The story is told through the postcards and letters that Elizabeth sends to her special friend Jeremy, the owner of her favourite café. Most of the movie happens during night time.
My Blueberry Nights is, in a way, an homage to the characters, themes and the ambience of the black and white classic movies of the 1950s... but shot in glorious colours. The movie is an ode to the life of the American urban nights and of its characters.
This is a very artistic and stylish film, in which the settings, the characters, the colours, the textures, the music, and the wardrobe have been taken care of to the minimal detail.
The acting is good in general. I found Rachel Weisz, David Strathairn and Natalie Portman excellent in their respective roles. Jude Law is correct as cafe owner Jeremy, in a role that does is not dramatically demanding. On the contrary, I found the presence of Norah Jones as Elizabeth a big mistake; she is a great musician and singer, but she doesn't have any dramatic talent.
One of the main flaws of the movie is the underdevelopment of Elizabeth's character. She is supposed to be the main character in the movie, but she ends being only a link between the different stories. Elizabeth's miseries and emotional struggle are barely hinted, and it is difficult to empathise with her or understand her actions.
The film has poor reviews in general, but I loved it in spite of its flaws because of its stylish atmosphere, its emotional depiction of the American underground and night life, the wonderful music, and some of the performances.
