Critics Applaud the Honest, Thoughtful Approach of Springsteen Biopic ‘Deliver Me From Nowhere’

Jeremy Allen White stuns as The Boss in a stripped-down look at the making of Nebraska.

A Different Kind of Rock Biopic

The highly anticipated Bruce Springsteen biopic Deliver Me From Nowhere had its world premiere at the Telluride Film Festival this weekend, ahead of its wide release on October 24. Directed with a quiet intensity and starring The Bear’s Jeremy Allen White as Springsteen, the film isn’t your typical rock star montage of tour buses, fame, and Top 40 anthems. Instead, it zeroes in on one of the most introspective and unconventional chapters in The Boss’s career — the making of his stark 1982 album Nebraska.

Adapted from Warren Zanes’ 2023 book of the same name, the film traces Springsteen’s creative and emotional descent into the lo-fi recording that became Nebraska, an album often hailed by hardcore fans and critics as his most haunting and artistically daring work.

“If you’re expecting a jukebox movie of hits, you’re in for something else entirely,” wrote Deadline’s Pete Hammond. “This is the real deal — a smart, soulful meditation on the artist behind the music.”

Jeremy Allen White: No Mere Impression

Much of the film’s early acclaim is centered on Jeremy Allen White’s transformative performance. Best known for his role as Carmen “Carmy” Berzatto in The Bear, White trained extensively for the role, learning guitar and voice from scratch to embody Springsteen both physically and emotionally — without tipping into impersonation.

Critics are calling it a breakout moment. “White doesn’t just imitate Bruce — he channels him,” Hammond continued. “It’s reminiscent of Sissy Spacek’s Oscar-winning turn as Loretta Lynn.”

His portrayal is described as raw, internal, and fully committed — capturing a Springsteen not on stage, but in solitude, wrestling with doubt, depression, and the ghosts that fueled his most personal record.

The Sound of Silence (and a Few Born-in-the-USA Roars)

While music plays a vital role in the film, it’s not the dominant force some viewers might expect. In fact, Deliver Me From Nowhere chooses subtlety over spectacle. According to The Hollywood Reporter’s David Rooney, the sound design is carefully curated, with a standout scene showing the E Street Band’s initial studio session for “Born in the U.S.A.” injecting one of the film’s few electric jolts.

Still, some critics felt the movie underplays the cultural weight of Nebraska’s DIY origins. As Variety’s Peter Debruge pointed out, the film doesn’t fully contextualize the radical nature of Springsteen — one of the biggest rock stars in the world at the time — opting to record an album alone in his bedroom on a four-track recorder.

“In a post-Bandcamp world, that kind of setup might feel ordinary to younger viewers,” Debruge writes. “But in 1982, it was revolutionary.”

Even so, its quietness becomes the film’s greatest strength. By stepping away from the stadiums and turning inward to explore the shadows of the artist’s mind, Deliver Me From Nowhere paints a poignant portrait of a musician who had to look within before he could move forward.

Deliver Me From Nowhere hits theaters nationwide on October 24, 2025.