'Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere' Review: A Quiet, Haunting Look at The Boss at a Crossroads
- Jack Ransom
- 4 hours ago
- 3 min read
By Jack Ransom - December 23, 2025
Based on the novel of the same name. Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere sees New Jersey rocker Bruce Springsteen (Jeremy Allen White) struggle to reconcile the pressures of success with the ghosts of his past as he records the album "Nebraska" in the early 1980s.
Over the past couple of years I have become a huge fan of The Boss. Saw him live twice this year, have watched multiple documentaries on him and the making of his albums and given several of his concert films a viewing. It’s been a long time since I have been genuinely excited and interested in a music biopic, so I had my fingers crossed that director Scott Cooper would be able to elevate the material above standard the biographical fare.
Whilst the film does coast into a few unavoidable trappings and can feel a tad padded and choppy at points, like last year’s A Complete Unknown, the film benefits from focusing on a particular moment of the artist’s career, instead of an overview of their life and rise to fame and fortune. This particular moment of Springsteen’s career was arguably his most poignant and personal, as he was just coming off the back of the hugely successful The River tour (Hungry Heart echoes across the first act of the film), he found himself facing ghosts of his past, experimenting with his sound and working his way through his depression.
This is a very quiet and slow burning affair, with a warmly melancholic atmosphere that becomes completely (and fittingly) overwhelming at times. Structurally the film is interspersed with flashbacks to Bruce’s childhood that help add layers of context to the songs he his crafting (particularly effective during My Father’s House - one of my favourite Springsteen tunes) and act as glimpses into what he is trying to come to terms with.
The glimpses of levity and charming romance he shares with Faye (Odessa Young) are a lighter counterbalance and of course, fans will know that during the Nebraska sessions, Born in the U.S.A. (arguably his most iconic album) was also being constructed in its first form, so we get the myriad of peeks into the recording studio process and the business side with Bruce’s manager and friend Jon Landau (Jeremy Strong), as he works to understand what Bruce is trying to achieve with these songs, and present them to the label.
The amount of live performances are restrained compared to what is usually seen in this genre (usually what these biopics self themselves on), but we catch a raucous wrap up of Born to Run, a stellar recreation of Born in the U.S.A., many an intimate Nebraska outtake and a couple of energetic trips to The Stone Pony. The film looks fantastic as well. The era is captured effortlessly and the cinematography blends crispness and grittiness, with excellent lighting. The camerawork is intimate and Cooper frequently emphasises the expressions of the characters and taps into Bruce’s feeling of isolation during this period. Lastly, the flashbacks are presented in bold, chromatic black and white, with a striking harshness and cold to them.
Whilst Jeremy Allen White may not be the spitting image of Bruce, he nails the mannerisms, inflections and mood of The Boss, whom was in his early 30’s at this point and penning lyrics with the level of maturity, world outlook and storytelling of someone twice that age. He absolutely nails the vocals, to the point where they are indistinguishable from the man himself, particularly on Born in the U.S.A. Jeremy Strong’s kind, motivational and trusting mentor position is a welcome, optimistic dedicated presence, Stephen Graham’s portrayal of Bruce’s troubled father looms over the proceedings, Odessa Young brings levity and sweetness, and she and JAW have good chemistry. Lastly, Paul Water Hauser and David Krumholtz standout in their smaller support roles.
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is an excellent recapturing of an intimate, challenging period of time for Springsteen and showcases the process of his bold, stripped back change of sound that he crafted to work through his emotions. Jeremy Allen White is excellent, the film looks superb and immerses you in the slow burn quieter moments. It can feel a little long, especially in the third act, and some elements could have been more focused upon, but as Springsteen fan I enjoyed this a lot.
'Springsteen: Deliver me From Nowhere' is available now to buy or rent on digital platforms.
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