The Soloist, a film starring Hollywood notables Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey, Jr., opens this week based on a book (same title). It portrays the relationship between a gifted musician, Nathaniel Ayers, living on Skid Row after he career was cut short by schizophrenia, and an LA Times columnist, Steve Lopez, who is moved by his music. Within hours of its delayed release (originally slated for Nov.), Entertainment Weekly was predicting a box-office hit, a contender for number one take this weekend. A sampling of reviews can be found in: The New Yorker;Los Angeles Times; CNN The roll-out for this much publicized release included interviews with Foxx describing his preparation for the role. Steve Schaefer, host of Soundcheck spoke with cellist Ben Hong who taught Foxx how to play and how to mime playing the cello.
Also see Arlene Notoro Morgan's essay Making a difference.
