Richard Linklater’s excellent Blue Moon, tells the story of legendary lyricist Lorenz Hart bravely facing the future as his professional and private life unravel.  Confined almost entirely to a single location, “Blue Moon” unspools at Sardi’s, the legendary midtown New York restaurant, immediately following the opening of former partner Richard Rodgers’ “Oklahoma!”   The date is March 31, 1943, and there’s a war on, although it’s a cold one between the former songwriting duo.

Linklater captures the heart of the writer through one of the last nights in the life of Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke), who was once one of the most acclaimed Broadway songwriters on the scene before fame and passion stopped returning his calls. He’s now the drunk at the end of the bar, the guy who gets there first and leaves last, and the one who can barely hide the pain behind his non-stop commentary on film, Broadway, and everything else around him. Working from a script by Robert Kaplow, Linklater has crafted one of his finest dramedies, a consistently fascinating exploration of the frailty of the artist, buoyed by one of Ethan Hawke’s most remarkable performances.

By the time this night is over, Hart will have confronted both a world that no longer values his talent and the seeming impossibility of love.