Two brothers, Ellis and Carter, embark on a journey from New Mexico to find their estranged father in the hopes of saving Ellis, who has been diagnosed with terminal leukemia. Along the way while in Texas, they meet Krystal, an aspiring singer, who flees from her abusive husband, Frank, to join them on their journey.
Plot
In the spring of 1993, a young Carter along with his girlfriend Laurel found out that Carter's mom has been physically abused again by his father. He decides to leave Tennessee along with his mom and his younger brother Ellis. In 2007, a grown up Carter has discovered that his brother Ellis has acute leukemia. Ellis then told Carter that they might need to go back to Tennessee to have a match for Ellis' bone marrow transplant since Carter isn't and their mother is already deceased. On their way to Tennessee, their car broke down and stopped at a local diner. Ellis later meets Krystal, a waitress who doesn't seem to enjoy her job. They later get acquainted to which Krystal quits her job and lets the boys ride in to her car to accompany them to Tennessee. Since the boys doesn't have anywhere to sleep, Krystal brings them to her house where her husband Frank, an abusive sheriff, gets mad at the idea of bringing them to his home. In the morning, Krystal realizes that this is not the life she has ever dreamed of since she has always wanted to be a singer-songwriter. She then decides to leave Frank early in the morning in able for him not to control her. Along with the boys they head to a bar and danced for a little while not until Carter made a scandal that angered Krystal. Frank decides to track them using the plate number of her car to which Krystal trades with another one. Despite that, Frank was still able to catch them on the road. Krystal later outsmarts Frank and ran to a nearby train station with the boys headed to Tennessee. Arriving at Tennessee, Carter, Ellis and Krystal have ran out of pocket money. Krystal then tries to pawn her guitar but Carter stops her after seeing a flyer for a singing contest in a bar to which she competes. Frank, who arrived late at Tennessee sees a girl, traumatically abused by her boyfriend. He later realizes the same situation with him and Krystal. He heads to a bar, where the singing contest is happening and sees Krystal performing to which he doesn't pursue her but instead sets her free. After winning, Krystal gives them enough money and they head their separate ways. While on the bus, Carter finds out that Ellis has passed out where he then rushes him to a hospital. Ellis later wakes up and asks Carter for a picture of a mountain in a nearby middle school to which Carter later finds out that his ex-girlfriend Laurel is there working as a teacher. Afraid to talk to her, he decides to head back to the hospital. Carter drives and heads to his old house to which he discovers that their father is not there. An old woman in the neighborhood asks Carter if he is the son of Roy and tells him that a package is waiting for him. He finds out that his father has passed away a long time ago and that the package was made by Ellis which contains a letter saying that Ellis knew about their fathers death all along and decides to throw a trip to Tennessee in order for Carter to realize and face his fears that he has always thought of ever since he left home. He also said that the picture was for him to find out that Laurel was still there and tells him to give it a chance to talk to her. It is then concluded that Ellis died to which Carter and Krystal, throws his ashes in the top of a mountain. Krystal decides to head home and Carter tells him that he will be waiting for her big break as a singer. Carter then travels to the middle school and finds Laurel. He decides to go and talk to her until the screen goes black.
co-wrote "Right to Dream" with Willie Nelson and performed it with Nelson's harmonica player, Mickey Raphael, for the movie's soundtrack. "It's not really country," says Nelson, "It's more Mariah." In May 2010, Carey's cover of Kris Kristofferson's "Help Me Make It Through the Night," was leaked online. It was originally supposed to appear on the Tennessee soundtrack.
Release and reception
The premiere of Tennessee took place at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 26, 2008. Tennessee was released to 15 theaters on June 5, 2009.
Box office
Playing in limited release, Tennessee has grossed $9,438 from 15 theaters for a per-screen average of $629 in its opening weekend. As of June 24, it grossed a total of $16,100.
Critical reception
Critical response for the film was generally mixed, with Metacritic calculating an average rating of 42% based on 8 reviews. Based on 21 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, it had an average rating of 33% with an average score of 4.5/10. The Hollywood Reporter said that the pacing is off and that the movie meanders until it reaches its unexpectedly powerful conclusion. Most of the critics praised Mariah Carey's performance, describing it as "emotional" and "effective". The music behind the film, especially the Mariah Carey written song "Right To Dream" received acclaim as well, and was even considered by notable critics as a contender for an Academy Award.
The DVD, initially scheduled for release on September 1, 2009, was released on January 26, 2010 in accordance with the film's official promotional site.
