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Parting ways from the more prominent collaborator in a showbiz double act is a dangerous affair. Larry David experienced it. So did Andrew Ridgeley. Now, this witty and heartbreakingly sad intimate film from scriptwriter Robert Kaplow and director Richard Linklater recounts the nearly intolerable tale of Broadway lyricist the lyricist Lorenz Hart right after his breakup from Richard Rodgers. His role is portrayed with theatrical excellence, an dreadful hairpiece and fake smallness by actor Ethan Hawke, who is frequently technologically minimized in stature – but is also at times recorded placed in an unseen pit to look up poignantly at heightened personas, addressing the lyricist's stature problem as José Ferrer in the past acted the petite Toulouse-Lautrec.

Layered Persona and Motifs

Hawke achieves large, cynical chuckles with the character's witty comments on the subtle queer themes of the movie Casablanca and the overly optimistic stage show he recently attended, with all the lariat-wielding cowhands; he sarcastically dubs it Okla-gay. The sexual identity of Lorenz Hart is complex: this movie skillfully juxtaposes his queer identity with the straight persona fabricated for him in the 1948 musical Words and Music (with actor Mickey Rooney playing Hart); it intelligently infers a kind of dual attraction from Hart's correspondence to his protege: youthful Yale attendee and would-be stage designer Weiland, acted in this movie with uninhibited maidenly charm by Margaret Qualley.

As part of the famous musical theater songwriting team with musician Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart was in charge of unparalleled tunes like the classic The Lady Is a Tramp, the tune Manhattan, the standard My Funny Valentine and of course Blue Moon. But exasperated with the lyricist's addiction, unreliability and depressive outbursts, Rodgers ended their partnership and teamed up with the writer Oscar Hammerstein II to write the musical Oklahoma! and then a multitude of theater and film hits.

Emotional Depth

The picture imagines the deeply depressed Lorenz Hart in the show Oklahoma!'s premiere New York audience in 1943, gazing with jealous anguish as the show proceeds, despising its mild sappiness, hating the exclamation point at the conclusion of the name, but heartsinkingly aware of how lethally effective it is. He realizes a success when he views it – and feels himself descending into failure.

Prior to the break, Hart unhappily departs and makes his way to the tavern at Sardi’s where the rest of the film occurs, and expects the (unavoidably) successful Oklahoma! troupe to arrive for their after-party. He knows it is his entertainment obligation to praise Rodgers, to act as if things are fine. With suave restraint, the performer Andrew Scott plays Richard Rodgers, clearly embarrassed at what both are aware is Hart's embarrassment; he offers a sop to his self-esteem in the form of a short-term gig composing fresh songs for their ongoing performance A Connecticut Yankee, which simply intensifies the pain.

• Bobby Cannavale plays the barkeeper who in traditional style attends empathetically to Hart's monologues of vinegary despair
• Actor Patrick Kennedy acts as writer EB White, to whom Lorenz Hart unintentionally offers the concept for his kids' story the book Stuart Little
• The actress Qualley acts as the character Weiland, the impossibly gorgeous Yale attendee with whom the picture conceives Hart to be complicatedly and self-harmingly in affection

Lorenz Hart has earlier been rejected by Rodgers. Surely the universe wouldn't be that brutal as to have him dumped by Weiland as well? But Margaret Qualley ruthlessly portrays a girl who desires Hart to be the chuckling, non-sexual confidant to whom she can reveal her exploits with young men – as well of course the theater industry influencer who can further her career.

Performance Highlights

Hawke demonstrates that Lorenz Hart somewhat derives spectator's delight in listening to these boys but he is also genuinely, tragically besotted with Elizabeth Weiland and the film tells us about an aspect seldom addressed in movies about the realm of stage musicals or the movies: the terrible overlap between occupational and affectionate loss. Yet at a certain point, Lorenz Hart is defiantly aware that what he has accomplished will persist. It’s a terrific performance from Ethan Hawke. This could be a live show – but who will write the numbers?

Blue Moon was shown at the London cinema festival; it is released on 17 October in the US, November 14 in the UK and on 29 January in the land down under.