Inside 'The Soloist': Downey Jr., Foxx, Keener... and Cleveland?

Rave reviews surround the new film The Soloist, starring Jamie Foxx, Catherine Keener and Robert Downey, Jr. The movie was just released nationwide last Friday, April 24, but this is a Cleveland story. Starting right here on the north coast, the audience follows a young boy, Nathaniel Ayers -- an African American musical child prodigy on his journey to the Julliard School of Music and beyond. His crossing with Los Angeles Times writer Steve Lopez in 2005 is the basis for the film.

As a student at Harry E. Davis Junior High School, Ayers listened to the school director's daughter, a string bass player, give a small performance to his class. Ayers decided he wanted to learn the bass, and started taking lessons at the Cleveland Music School Settlement with Cleveland Orchestra member Harry Barnoff.

"He studied with me until he graduated high school," said Barnoff, the retired, former 46-year bassist with the Cleveland Orchestra. "The first year he wasn't too serious, but then he became truly focused on the music. I remember him practicing in the music school while there were riots in Hough. His mother owned a beauty salon and encouraged him," he recalled.

The string bass lessons along with learning classical music made a big difference for Ayers (played by Foxx). Passionate about his music, Ayers was awarded a scholarship to Ohio University where he studied for two years before attending the Julliard School of Music in New York, also on scholarship.

"He had innate talent," said Barnoff. "I asked colleagues for feedback and my high opinion of his talent was confirmed. He played the bass remarkably well for the length of study."

At Julliard, Ayers studied with one of the most prominent classical bassists, Homer Mensch, and also worked with Gary Karr, a world renowned solo bassist. Ayers would telephone Barnoff periodically because he loved music and enjoyed talking to him about fingering and bowing, hand position, and the composers. Shakespeare was a favorite writer for Ayers.

"Unfortunately when he was about 21-years-old, he called me from a mental hospital," said Barnoff with sadness. "I know the rigors of Julliard are demanding and intense, and Nathaniel always wanted to improve and do more," he remembered.

"I was teaching at Cleveland State [University] at the time, and encouraged him to attend class there for a change. He enrolled temporarily but had to drop out. He was diagnosed with schizophrenia and had trouble staying on his medication."

Ayers would hang out at Severance Hall, and after they got to know who he was, the staff would let him in during intermission time to hear the second half of concerts.

The other star of this story is Lopez (played by Downey Jr.), a journalist working for the LA Times. With his own personal problems and looking for a new story, Lopez found Nathaniel Ayers living on the streets of Los Angeles as a homeless person playing string instruments. Ayers was so gifted as a musician that he was able to teach himself how to play the cello and violin even though the fingering and hand position were different from a string bass.

Through his writing, Lopez brought Ayers' story to light, his love of music, his homelessness, and his schizophrenia diagnosis. In response to these columns about Ayers, people started donating instruments to him. Due to Lopez's efforts, Ayers now lives in an assisted living apartment where he has room for these instruments and a studio to teach music to students. He also likes to be close to the Beethoven (his favorite composer) statue near Disney Hall.

Over two years ago, DreamWorks Studio movie director Joe Wright came to Cleveland to investigate the background about Ayers's story and spent three days with his bass teacher. "I had to sign a lot of papers," recalled Barnoff, "allowing for filming. They asked if it was okay that I was portrayed as 40-ish and rumpled in the movie. Rumpled I asked? But I always dressed in a shirt and tie and sports jacket for teaching," he said with a laugh shaking his head.

"At the lessons, he called me Mr. Barnoff and I called him Nathaniel, all very respectful," he added.

Nathaniel Ayers is now 58 years old and living in Los Angeles. His sister, Jennifer, is managing his finances and the Nathaniel Anthony Ayers Foundation in his honor to help the artistically gifted mentally ill.

The Soloist – The Review

Yes, The Soloist is definitely worth seeing for many reasons. Even though the movie takes some artistic license with Nathaniel Ayers's life story, it is a film of substance and character drawing the audience into a life of remarkable musical talent as he combats the mental illness demons.

For example, the spotlight is on Foxx playing beautiful music with the cello and violin throughout the movie, however there is no mention of the string bass (his first instrument), except at the end where it lists over ten instruments that Ayers actively uses for his music.

Foxx smoothly adopts the subtle behavior changes, irregular speech patterns, eye contact or lack thereof, and intensity that makes him truly believable as a gifted, homeless, schizophrenic man. Downey, Jr. is a conflicted, down and out journalist, who finds his way out through his friendship with Nathaniel Ayers.

The road bends and turns along the way, but the two men finally get to a comfortable place where they can accept each other for who they are.

Adding to the film credibility, homeless people are realistically pictured in the background throughout most of ''The Soloist'. Because the human elements, the drama and emotion are strong, by the end of the movie the audience is cheering for Nathaniel Ayers, Steve Lopez, program staff members, and homeless people.

Cleveland is briefly portrayed through early film footage of neighborhood homes, industrial-looking bridges, and a flaming car rolling across the screen at night to signify the turbulent times and race riots. Ayers frequently mentions Cleveland in his rambling attempts to communicate with people.

Ivan Schwarz, executive director for the Greater Cleveland Film Commission, said they brought the DreamWorks film crew to Cleveland so they could get the feel of the city, the character and the old architecture, to strengthen the movie. More movie crews would come to Ohio but they are stopped by the state taxes.

Unfortunately, the state of Ohio has no tax incentives for filming here so rather than paying large amounts of money in taxes, crews opt to build mock scenes in California instead of shooting in real locations. The Greater Cleveland Film Commission is working with Columbus to change the tax structure.

From Cool Cleveland contributor Susan Schaul susn1ATatt.net
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