A young JR (Daniel Ranieri) and his mother (Lily Rabe) move in to his grandfather’s (Christopher Lloyd) when they are abandoned by his father (Max Martini). As he grows up he seeks out surrogate fathers in the form of his Uncle Charlie (Ben Affleck) and his friends and customers at the bar he runs. Later as a young man (Tye Sheridan) JR will use those life lessons to guide him through college and to a career as a writer. 

The Tender Bar is based on the memoir by J. R. Moehringer released in 2005. Written for the screen by William Monahan (The Departed) and directed by George Clooney. The end result is an entertaining and engrossing coming of age drama with its themes buried in old fashioned masculinity and drinking/smoking culture. 

Ben Affleck delivers another understated performance in his comeback to smaller character driven films following the likes of The Way Back (2020) evidencing his talent at playing a working class alcoholic. Otherwise Ranieri and Sheridan (and Ron Livingston in voiceover) do a fine job at playing JR at different stages of his life. 

There is nothing wrong with The Tender Bar but equally there is nothing that lifts it above many other coming of age films. When George Clooney opened his directorial career with the likes of Good Night, and Good Luck and The Ides Of March I thought he might go on to exciting 1970’s style dramas but since then he has gone on to make the sort of films you enjoy but would not revisit.