Beyond the Sea

A tour de force by director Kevin Spacey drives this highly entertaining biography of 1960s crooner Bobby Darin. Spacey even does his own singing, performing such hits as “Mack the Knife.” Kate Bosworth costars as Darin’s wife, Sandra Dee. John Goodman, Bob Hoskins, Brenda Blethyn, Greta Scacchi., Kevin Spacey serves as both director and star for this biopic based on the life and career of legendary entertainer Bobby Darin, which moves back and forth between his childhood and adult selves to tell the tale of his remarkable life. Born Bobby Cassotto and raised in the Bronx, young Bobby (played as a child by William Ullrich) was raised by his mother, Polly (Brenda Blethyn), his brother-in-law, Charlie (Bob Hoskins), and his sister, Nina (Caroline Aaron). At the age of 15, Bobby contracted a severe case of rheumatic fever, which was expected to take his life; while it left him with a weak heart, Bobby beat the odds and survived. Buoyed by a love of music passed along by his mother, Bobby learned to play several instruments and began singing as he recovered. Displaying a confidence and drive which stopped just short of arrogance, he adopted the stage name Bobby Darin and set his sights on becoming a star. After a string of hits as a rock & roll singer, Darin (played as an adult by Kevin Spacey) takes another gamble, and with the help of manager Steve Blauner (John Goodman) he reinvents himself as a supper-club vocalist in the manner of Frank Sinatra. All the more remarkably, he succeeds, and his swinging version of “Mack the Knife” tops the charts. Now a major singing star, Darin decides to take up acting; on the set of his first movie, he woos his female co-star Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth), and despite the stern objections of her mother (Greta Scacchi), Bobby and Sandra wed. But after a string of successful movies for Dee and hit records and an Oscar nomination for Darin, the shifting tastes of the 1960s throw their careers off-track. Bobby cautiously embraces the new sounds of the day, but his old fans don’t want to hear him cover Bob Dylan or the Rolling Stones, while the younger audience isn’t interested in his new sound, leaving Darin in a difficult place to make his way back to stardom. Kevin Spacey did his own singing for Beyond the Sea, recreating Bobby Darin’s vocal style with uncanny accuracy., Vibrant biopic of singing star Bobby Darin. Young Bobby refuses to let poor health prevent him making it big with hits like ‘Mack The Knife’ in the 50s and 60s. But his ambition has a drastic effect both physically and on his marriage to pop starlet Sandra Dee., Kevin Spacey directs and stars as singer Bobby Darin, whose success took its toll on his health… and his marriage to starlet Sandra Dee (Kate Bosworth)., A swooning study of “Mack the Knife” singer Bobby Darin, his journey from boyhood in the Bronx to his successful career as an entertainer, and his relationship with his wife Sandra Dee., The life and career of 1960s crooner Bobby Darin., Biopic based on the life and career of legendary entertainer Bobby Darin., Kevin Spacey directs and stars in this bio-pic of singer Bobby Darin. The film charts his rise from 50s pop star with Splish Splash to his 70s success as a nightclub singer with Mack the Knife and the film’s title song. Kate Bosworth plays Sandra Dee, the singer he met on a film set and married. With Brenda Blethyn as his mother and John Goodman as his manager.