Tully

Produced by Hilary Birmingham, Annie Sundberg, and included in the Best Feature nomination of the Independent Spirits Awards, this film is definitely a must-see movie.

The film's themes are not too distant from those of About Schmidt, but comes through within incredibly heartfelt and genuine feel about the story. It's easy to get totally hooked to all the characters. It's brilliantly shot, the characters molding in with the landscapes in a manner that exposes their soulful moods.

Truly a solidly good story with an honest, thought provoking, and poignant coming-of-age revelation. Absolutely top-notched performances from a lovely cast ensemble of actors! It's a farm drama that creeps with hidden dark family secrets that gradually unravel – at a cool, quiet, and awesomely engaging pace. Watching the mesmerizing performance of charismatic Julianne Nicholson alone is worth the price of a regular tix. For me, she's the American version of Leslie Carron; for a friend, she's the American version of Emily Watson! Awesomely poised, simple, and charmingly charismatic, she's extremely captivating! And Glenn FitzGerald and Anson Mount – in their roles as the Coates brothers - are two gorgeous youths who couldn't be more different in their personalities and traits, will sweep the audience along a truly heartfelt journey of unsuspecting events that are beautifully knitted together to their final twists. Catherine Kellner's haughty April character is just as credible as the rest of the fine cast of actors. One will even find Natalie Canaday's counter-sales lady a real sweetheart! But Bob Burrus in the role of Tully, Sr. is overwhelming in his performance as the father with the bottled-up feelings. Yep he's definitely more convincing than Jack Nicholson's Schmidt role!

This is one of those few movies that deserve a mighty applause for the good foresight of the casting agent(s). Every once of action, event and expression seems so realistic. It's easy to get so totally swept away by every character. The film does succeed in delivering honest moods of romance, parental and sibling relationships, love, seduction and jealousy, or relationship. There exist that unique sensibility that does not equate with cheesy sexual exploits or crudity. It's not even plastered with any of those distasteful hip-hop extravaganzas to draw the younger viewers. Nice easy dialogue to follow.

According to Director Hilary Birmingham at the Q&A session I attended, the unfortunate delay of the film's release was caused by unforeseen mishaps in distribution deals; firstly by an American-Canadian distribution partnership that went sour, and subsequently by one that went bankrupt. I understand that this film will be released here, sometime in January. As a low-budget film, it definitely deserves no less than a solid A rating!

Saw this movie twice and would be willing to see it again!

TULLY (2002) **** Anson Mount, Julianne Nicholson, Glenn Fitzgerald, Catherine Kellner, Bob Borrus, Natalie Canerday, John Diehl, V. Craig Hedenreich. Novice filmmaker Hilary Birmingham (who co-wrote the screenplay with Matt Drake, adapting a short story by Tom McNeal) beautifully captures the visage of rural small-town America(na) in contemporary tones in this wonderfully modulated tale about a middle-aged farmer (Borrus, a truly amazing low-key yet ultimately heartbreaking performance as a man who has sacrificed so much and tenuously hanging onto what is his own: his land and family) and his two sons (Mount as the titular protagonist and Fitzgerald are equally poignant and excellent) who face a moment from their past that clearly will alter their precarious futures. Nicholson (sporting cinema's sexiest freckles) as the family's friend is sublimely perfect as a veterinarian school student who returns to town arousing the boys' one more time. Gorgeously shot by John Foster and a gentle, pensive score by Marcelo Zarvos elevates this true sleeper gem as one of the year's very best.

A fine little family drama I had never heard of, but which I'm now completely glad that I've seen.

The title character of "Tully" is a young man struggling to come of age on the farm he works with his father and younger brother. Rebellious in spirit and darkly good looking, he's more socially and sexually experienced than his brother, and has a more contentious relationship with his dad. When a family secret surfaces, though, it becomes apparent that his bravado masks a great deal of insecurity, and proves that though he may be mature in some ways, he has a lot of maturing still to do in others.

"Tully" has a quiet, low-key quality to it that I very much liked. It has a feel for the natural rhythms of rural life and the people who inhabit it. Grand epiphanies, emotional showdowns and the other stuff of traditional family dramas are not present here; instead, turning points and realizations take place subtly and quietly. Many times it's the moments of silence that convey more than scenes filled with dialogue.

The acting is tremendous, and the actors themselves inhabit these characters naturally and flawlessly. Even Tully (Anson Mount), who's supposed to be charismatic and handsome, is charismatic and handsome in the way that someone would actually be in real life, not in the way that movie stars are.

Grade: A

Anyone who knows somebody from a Kansas farm and has been to Kansas will get homesick for them just looking at the movie. Tully touched me so much I cried, which is normal for me when I watch a heart warming story but this time when I was crying I didn't realize it until I had salt water running down my cheeks and I was like what is that? When you don't know your crying somebody is doing something right. At first I was like what's up with all the ice cream until you see the very end of the movie then you know....it really just hurts the heart but you know if you were in the same position you just might do the same thing.

Never heard of this film and had no idea about the actors or just what this film story would reveal. The story is about two grown young men and their father who own a large farm out in the middle of the Heartland where their was a small town where farm people had their entertainment and shopping areas. Glenn Fitzgerald, (Earl Coates) and Anson Mount,(Tully Coates Jr.) are the two brothers who both give outstanding performances along with Julianne Nicholson,(Ella Smalley). Tully Coates is a good looking young man who has all the girls running after him and he seems to have more sex than he can handle. However, when he meets up with Ella his life takes a different change. This story has some very deep secrets that are eventually revealed much to everyone's surprise and if you like to see the wide open spaces with cattle close by and plenty of corn fields, this is the film for you.