NOBODY'S FOOL
A film review by Chad Polenz
Copyright 1997 Chad Polenz
*** (out of 4 = good) 1994, R, 110 minutes [1 hour, 40 minutes] [drama] starring: Paul Newman (Donald "Sully" Sullivan), Dylan Walsh (Peter Sullivan), Bruce Willis (Carl Roebuck), Jessica Tandy (Miss Beryl), Melanie Griffith (Toby Roebuck), produced by Scott Rudin, Arlene Donovan, written and directed by Robert Benton, based on the novel by Richard Russo.
The problem with making films based on novels is that the films tend to have a "novel" mood to them. They often seem more like actors reading straight from the book and not feature films. "Nobody's Hero" does an excellent job in capturing the essence of a "Great American Novel," but does this necessarily make for a great film?
The story opens just before Thanksgiving in North Bath, N.Y., a small town in the mountains covered in snow. We meet Donald "Sully" Sullivan (Newman), and old-timer who is the town wiseass and the local mooch. He lives with Miss Beryl (Tandy), an elderly woman, and is trying to sue his (former) employer, Carl Roebuck (Willis) and his Tip Top Construction company, for injuries he sustained from "work-related duties."
Sully seems to be desperate for cash in any way he can get it. He vows he will never work again, yet he can't help but go back and ask for something to do. Roebuck is a no-nonsense guy and knows Sully is a good worker, but also a slacker. Roebuck cheats on his wife but doesn't try too hard to keep it a secret. Whenever Sully and Toby Roebuck (Griffith) see each other they talk about how they should get back at Carl by having an affair of their own.
Right away the film has that "novel" atmosphere to it, where all the characters are representations of classic personalities and themes. The problem is they are portrayed in such a way the film almost assumes we can understand and relate to the characters and the events, especially when it comes to the relationship between Sully and Toby.
Sully meets his adult son Peter (Walsh), whom he hasn't seen since he left his family when Peter was a child. Sully can't explain why he did it, and he doesn't expect Peter to forgive him either. A pretty interesting relationship begins to unfold between the two as they start to get to know each other. They actually become close friends, which is quite interesting to watch.
Peter and his wife have a fight which causes her to leave and take one of the kids with her. So Peter and Sully start to work together, scavenging pieces of an old house in which Sully grew up in. The chemistry between Walsh and Newman is great, they really do seem like father and son even though they are just getting to know each other. We also see Sully taking care of his grandchild, and Peter asks why he cares, to which Sully replies, "Well, I gotta start somewhere."
Not much else happens in terms of plot. There is a subplot about a prospective amusement park to be built near the town, but it has little to do with the relationships between the characters. In the end Sully has grown and matured, but he is still basically the same (the more things change the more they stay the same).
So a typical novel has been made into a rather typical movie, but a pretty good movie nevertheless. It certainly is interesting to see how these small towns operate and to watch these characters interact with each other. "Nobody's Fool" is a good movie about American life in a manner we don't see that much.
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