Sweet and Lowdown

Sweet and Lowdown is a 1999 American comedy-drama mockumentary written and directed by Woody Allen. Loosely based on Federico Fellini's film La Strada, the film tells the story of jazz guitarist Emmet Ray (played by Sean Penn) who falls in love with mute laundress Hattie (Samantha Morton). Like several of Allen's other films (e.g., Zelig), the film is occasionally interrupted by interviews with critics and biographers like Allen, Nat Hentoff, Daniel Okrent, and Douglas McGrath, who comment on the film's plot as if the characters were real-life people. The film received generally positive reviews upon release, with Penn and Morton receiving Oscar nominations for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actress, respectively. Plot Emmet Ray is a jazz guitarist who achieved some acclaim in the 1930s with a handful of recordings for RCA Victor, but faded from public view under mysterious circumstances. Although he is a talented musician, Ray's personal life fell into shambles after his disappearance from public view. He's often late or even absent for performances with his quintet due to heavy drinking. He spends extravagantly, and is a womanizer and a pimp. When he's not playing music or pursuing women, he shoots rats at garbage dumps and watches passing trains. Ray idolizes famed guitarist Django Reinhardt, so much so that he's said to have fled a nightclub performance with severe stage fright upon hearing a false rumor that Reinhardt was in the audience.