A Slipping-Down Life

This naturally brings her to the attention of the musician in question, one Drumstrings Casey, played by Guy Pearce, his angular features de-sanitized with a head of long, greasy hair. Casey is a brooding singer/songwriter whose career has been hampered by his habit of “speaking out,” staring intensely into the middle distance and uttering cryptic, vaguely oracular pronouncements such as, “You think you’re invisible, but I can see you.” Drumstrings would have to be something pretty special to explain Evie’s maniacal devotion—ideally he’d have a Jeff Buckley-like mystique. And the filmmakers put a lot of energy into his musical persona, bringing in the brilliant Joe Henry as musical director and having Drumstrings perform songs written by Henry, Ron Sexsmith, and Vic Chesnutt, among others. Unfortunately, despite this impressive lineup of songwriting talent, Drumstrings comes across as an entirely unexceptional artist. Pearce is a competent but uninspired singer, and since he’s rarely shown performing more than a few lines from any given song, his character never develops a recognizable musical personality. But the heart of this movie isn’t the music, it’s the relationship between Evie and Drum, and that’s handled perfectly. Both actors are at their best, and watching these two lost souls find each other is tremendously moving.