The Tender Bar (2021)
Amazon Studios
Director: George Clooney
Released on Amazon Prime 01/07/2022
Streamed on Amazon Prime
IMDB Synopsis: A boy growing up on Long Island seeks out father figures among the patrons at his uncle’s bar.
“You’re a writer the minute you say you are. Nobody gives you a diploma—you have to prove it, at least to yourself.”
The Tender Bar is George Clooney’s latest directorial offering. It is an adaptation of a 2005 memoir of the same name by J.R. Moehringer. In this coming-of-age story, we follow a young JR through adolescence as he struggles to find his place in life. JR has to deal with being a kid and having an absent father in Johnny, who is a radio DJ. Uncle Charlie (Ben Affleck) and Grandpa (Christopher Lloyd) fill the father figure role at home.
It is always a treat when Ben Affleck has a role that allows him to lean hard into his accent. He and young JR (Daniel Ranieri) have fantastic chemistry together. This is especially true in scenes where Uncle Charlie is giving JR life advice at his bar, The Dickens. Through the lessons given to JR at The Dickens, we as the audience are given insight into the behavior of JR’s father. It becomes clear why everyone remains on edge when he tries to come around.
While spending time at The Dickens, JR decides he wants to become a writer. Uncle Charlie provides JR with a wide variety of books for him to read and form his own writing style. He begins writing by creating a family newspaper that he distributes to his family one morning. Ultimately, it is Uncle Charlie who gives JR the nod of approval when he tells him that he just might have “it”.
The second half becomes very paint by number and lacks the plot to really be able to sink your teeth into that the first half had. That’s not to say it isn’t an enjoyable second half. We follow a young-adult JR, played by Tye Sheridan, as he gets accepted into Yale where his mother wants him to become a lawyer, falls in love, and ultimately becomes a “writer” (news assistant) with The New York Times. This all culminates with a satisfying and feel-good payoff in the final act.
The Tender Bar is at its best when Ben Affleck is on-screen interacting with JR. While I don’t believe that there will be a lot of rewatch value and there wasn’t a particular moment that screams “award nominations incoming”, Affleck turns in a performance that, for me, ranks up there with his performance in The Way Back from 2020. All in all, The Tender Bar is a feel-good story of self-discovery, the strength of family, and pursuing what it is in life that you want to pursue.
3.5 out of 5