Beyond the Sea (2004)

To make a film about the singer Bobby Darin has been Kevin Spacey's dream project for years and he wrote, directed and starred in this movie -- he was also one of the umpteen producers.  So perhaps this has a slight tinge of being a vanity project, especially since Darin died when he was 37 and Spacey is now far too old to play his singing hero, not just at the end of his career but most importantly as a young man  when he made his breakthrough.  Despite all this he makes a good fist of it and if one can forget the too mature appearance, Spacey just about convinces one.  The vocals are well-done and believable and the "facts" of his brief life are played for dramatic effect with some style.  However none of this really convinces the casual viewer that a film should have been made of Darin's life or that Spacey was the right choice of actor.