Nobody's Fool
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DVD Cover Information Actor: Bruce Willis, Dylan Walsh, Jessica Tandy, Melanie Griffith, Paul Newman DVD: Region Code 1 Audio: English (Unknown), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround; English (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround Format: Anamorphic, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen Picture Format: 1.85:1 Running Time: 110 minutes Published: 2003-09-01 DVD Release Date: 2003-09-09 Audience Rating: R (Restricted) Studio: Paramount |
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Movie Reviews of Nobody's Fool
Movie Review: Good For What It Was, I Guess
Summary: 3 Stars
First, a disclaimer: it's really tough to watch a movie, let alone review it, objectively when you've just finished reading the excellent book upon which it was based. Upon reflection, this was actually probably a pretty good movie, for what it was, and I do agree that Paul Newman deserved his Oscar nomination. It's just that the book was so real, so convincing in its portrayal of its characters, that I couldn't help feeling that the movie was, well, wrong. Though I know the book was a fiction, I couldn't help feeling that the movie was betraying the truth that the book presented. As the scenes in the movie pieced together the highlights, I kept having two thoughts: "wow, this is going by too fast; are we there already?" and "but that's not how it happened!" At any rate, I'd like my review to be something a little more meaningful than just the self-important cliche, "The book was way better." Whether or not I will succeed is up to you. [end disclaimer]The book was 550 pages long and rich in description, so I don't fault the movie for trimming story lines and collapsing others (e.g., Bruce Willis's character was a composite of at least three distinct characters in the book). In fact, this technique works surprisingly well for much of the movie; the story feels a little flatter, but the meaning is left pretty much intact. And I suppose that the filmmaker can be forgiven for softening up the title character and sentimentalizing him a bit in the very way that I pointed out the book did not. This is a Hollywood movie, after all.
I do find fault, though, with distorting the essential truth. Minor variations hurt the movie a bit throughout, but in one particular instance, near the end, a major breach significantly changes the whole point. I won't give it away, because it might ruin both the book and the movie (hint: it involves Melanie Griffith's affections), but it gives Sully more credit than he deserves, takes away something important from his son's character, and generally turns a fairly dark personality study into a warm, snuggly, feel-good moment. Eech.
As I expected I would, I have focused on the negative aspects of the movie, but, as I mentioned in my disclaimer, I think it was probably a good movie for what it was and I would still recommend it to people who have no intention of reading the book. The acting of the entire cast is strong (even Melanie Griffith and Bruce Willis are bearable), with especially high marks for the always-incredible Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jessica Tandy (in her final role), and Paul Newman, who is particularly good in the title role. And of course it had an excellent story to work with, which was, for the most part, told quite well. I guess that's the problem with reading books. They ruin otherwise perfectly good movies.