The Fabulous Baker Boys
Hello loyal readers. Consider this part one of a few Seattle-related posts. The Fabulous Baker Boys (1989) is a movie that long eluded me. I'm not exactly sure why, but I think I had misconceptions about it. I assumed it was a glitzy period piece with overwrought musical sequences. I was wrong on all those points. The movie takes place in a still grimy Seattle, circa 1988. This is a Seattle that is a blue collar port city, decidedly pre-tech industry and pre-grunge music explosion. Frank and Jack Baker are piano playing brothers who have their own semi-successful lounge act playing in slightly seedy joints in Seattle and environs. Older brother Frank (Beau Bridges) is married with a family, while younger brother Jack (Jeff Bridges) is single and lives in a bohemian apartment in Seattle's Pioneer Square area. Frank is the leader of the duo, booking all their shows and bantering with the audience with an arsenal of corny jokes. (Frank, however, is a bit of a pushover whe...