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" is a gem of a movie! It's the first film I've seen since the beginning of August that I've put on my "Best of 2002" list. Evidently this debut feature has apparently been sitting on a shelf for two years, probably looking for distribution.

Based on a short story, it takes a simple family story and tells it beautifully visually, economically but leisurely, while avoiding cliches. It is the best evocation of small town life since "Last Picture Show," but this is much more rural. The laconic farmer family is the best portrayed since "Straight Story," but that was propelled as a road movie, not what taciturn life on the farm is like, which poses a challenge in a communicative medium.

We see the most charming and complicated relationship between two brothers since another little movie "Smiling Fish and Goats on Fire." Surprisingly, it doesn't take the simple road of competition between the titular womanizing "bad brother" and the younger, loyal "good brother". Instead, Tully (Anson Mount is quite a hunk!) is a direct descendant of the tortured, conflicted James Dean of "East of Eden" and "Giant" (including the Oedipal conflicts there), struggling in a macho environment with his impact on women, his feelings, and his responsibilities.

With completely character appropriate dialogue and body language we watch the impact of old love and falling in love on a father and son who have no words and only gradual understanding. You can't know you're heartbroken until you know you have a heart. The women can have this impact on them because they too are not cliches; they have specific personalities, needs, and even jobs. Julianne Nicholson is very credible and expressive.

Several old men in my audience yawned loudly, so maybe this is a chick flick, but I was involved and moved by the unfolding of realizations in their past and present family and romantic relationships and how Tully comes to grips with them all, like a long, silent, overhead shot of him waking up in an empty bed that manages to communicate so much loneliness and longing.

John Foster's cinematography is simply gorgeous.

The mise en scene is common in country songs, so we're lucky that the director probably couldn't afford commercial country artists on the soundtrack for the usual cliches. Instead we have Canadian alt country singers like Fred Eaglesmith and Oh Susanna (the only names I recognized), with some blues thrown in as well such that Tully even asks what radio station could that be, as they are all very sensitive to music, as it helps them all communicate with each other. And with us.

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.

This film was like a breath of fresh air. It only played locally for a couple of weeks, if that much. Obviously, this film would have fared better had it gone to the Angelika or the Sunshine where a young crowd would have discovered it. I only caught it at the end of the run and I'm glad I did because not only it's a beautifully done, but because it's an honest account of life.

Director Hilary Birmnigham working with Matt Drake have created something rare in American cinema a well written drama with interesting and complex characters, a script that doesn't depend on special effects or the formula that most mainstream films.

The cast is superb. Anson Mount, Julianne Nicholoson, and Glenn Fitzgerald shine brightly in this film. Also Bob Burrus as the taciturn father is very effective.

I'm sure that by now it should be in DVD since it was done in 2000, you won't regret it.

Tully investigates how the loss of a parent can mark a child and affect the adult they become.

This film earned a rare second viewing. Even with a more critical eye, the performances seemed more than genuine. The tears, glances, body language, and smiles were perfectly rendered and filmed. I blew through the still pictures shown in the opening credits during the 1st showing, but appreciated the story they told with the knowledge I had about the characters with the 2nd look.

Casting kudos for the delicious Anson Mount, the graceful Julianna Nicholson, and the sweet, wounded dad.

Yes, it's a rural-paced film. Don't be in a hurry!