Blake Peterson
I have a theory that everyone remains a teenager until they day they die. Not the teenagers of the "Porky" franchise or the airheads of "Clueless" necessarily, but the mature, emotionally headstrong old souls of "The Breakfast Club" and "Flirting". Some grown-up teenagers are more jaded, considerate, and successful than others, while the remaining irresponsible hooligans look like adults but, in a "Shallow Hal"-ish twist, are actually fifteen- year-olds still in search of an identity. Look at those middle-aged men and women with graying hair taking your order at Wendy's: are they not a regretful little girl or boy who doesn't quite realize they're trapped in an adult's body?Sully (Paul Newman) belongs in the camp of the charismatic loners who never took the time to accept their responsibilities and actually grow up. He has freelanced in the construction industry his entire life, most recently making the most of his aging body by suing Carl Roebuck (Bruce Willis), the local contractor, to get extra pocket change. Years ago, Sully left his family at an important time, leaving his now grown son (Dylan Walsh) emotionally stunted, his ex-wife understandably jilted — why he did it is hard to explain. Commitment was never very attractive to him, and having a family hardly supplemented his lone wolf instincts. Part of his psyche is tarnished by guilt, but the other side reminds him, time and time again, that being a father, a husband, was never for him anyway.Currently, Sully rooms with his former eighth grade teacher, the elderly Beryl Peoples (Jessica Tandy), and passes the time doing dirty work around town and flirting with Carl's long suffering wife (Melanie Griffith). This has been his routine for years, decades even. So when his son comes to town, his wife and kids in tow, Sully is forced, after years of ignoring his most personal problems, to decide whether or not he wants to make up for lost time and finally become the father his son deserved, or ignore the facts and continue living in his own form of sheltered reality.Paul Newman, even when playing the bad guy (a rare case), has never done anything besides be likable. In "Cool Hand Luke", he was a should-have-been tarnished anti-hero; in "The Verdict", he was an alcoholic grouch who felt it necessary to punch Charlotte Rampling right in the kisser after she betrayed him. Fact is, even when portraying a man at his lowest point, Newman has always been the guy you want to be friends with, the guy who wish was your father, your uncle, your grandfather. There is something starkly humble, and believably all-around good, about him, on screen or off.In "Nobody's Fool", he plays a hustler we should, in our good senses, despise. Every character trait that shapes Sully is negative; what good has he done in his life besides make friends with barflies and keep his former teacher company? But damn it all to hell: it's impossible not to root for anyone portrayed by Newman. The film finds him nearing seventy, on the last legs of his long career. But hardly aged is his ability to give a face for the everyman, and, yes, the man-children who weren't fantastic youths but, hesitant or not, want to make up for it. Does "Nobody's Fool" provide for one of Newman's greatest performances? It's hard to say: he doesn't have to stretch his abilities like he has had to in the past. What he does do, though, is remind us why he is the movie star Hollywood, I'm sorry to say, can hardly muster today.Robert Benton, whose "The Late Show" has recently become a favorite of mine, writes and directs. A filmmaker who seems to specialize in the complexities of human relationships ("Kramer vs. Kramer", "Places of the Heart"), "Nobody's Fool" is masterful in its characterizations: near instantly, each character feels completely drawn, as if we have known them for years, as if we have heard all the town gossip that surrounds them. The knotty relationship between Sully and Toby Roebuck (Griffith) especially rings true — both are so fiercely independent that their flirting with one another comes less from a romantic place and more out of a desperate one. So unhappy are they that a mutual affection comforts their lonely ills. Romance, though? It requires too much commitment and dedication, and both have been too scorned by the past to do anything about their already shaky feelings.The characters of "Nobody's Fool" are almost abominably flawed, but we find their scarred personas more soothing than bothersome. We feel like we know these people, as if we also live in North Bath and have nothing better to do besides confide in our neighbor. Benton and his actors bring a world of lonely hearts startlingly to life; as messed up as they are, we want to be lonely with them.
Ross622
Robert Benton's Nobody's Fool is more than a pretty good film it is a good film, the movie tells the story about a character named Donald Sully a man who is at a rascally ne'er do well retirement age.. While he is pressing a worker's compensation for a bad knee, and secretly works for his nemesis Carl Roebuck, and flirts with his young wife Toby. Sully's long forgotten son and his family have moved back to town for not only for thanksgiving dinner but for Sully's son to spend time with him and so that his father can meet his children. The movie stars Paul Newman as Donald Sully who gets to see his long forgotten family but when he first sees them when he hasn't seen them in a long time. Gets anxiety about unfamiliar family responsibilities. This movie compares to The Descendants by Alexander Payne but in which both of those 2 films have two things in common, more drama than comedy, and one funny part in both. Director Robert Benton copies the directorial style of Alexander Payne with his direction for the movie. The movie also stars Jessica Tandy (who gives an overrated performance.), Bruce Willis ( as Sully's nemesis.), Melanie Griffith (as Roebuck's wife), and Phillip Seymour Hoffman as a police officer in the film. Based on a novel by Richard Russo this was a complete enjoyment for me.
Richard (richreed-1)
Many reviewers have already cited the excellent acting and the sheer high quality of the movie, so I'll suffice to say I echo their sentiments. I will add that Bruce Willis earns respect as a real actor; his star was well towards its apex when he played this role which could really have been done by many character actors who specialize in playing weasels. Willis took this ordinary supporting role and made it into a very memorable and even likable character.What I love about this film is the story itself, in that Sully Sullivan, an aging handy-man, APPEARS to be struggling with his life and what it meant, when in reality an entire town depends on Sullly to be....well....Sully. He is the thread that weaves the whole town and its many stories together. Even the few people who don't like him depend on him.(Possible spoiler) Toward the end, his son sums it all up and even pays him the ultimate compliment when he says to Sully "It's not easy being you." Simply a great movie on so many levels.
