| Tully | |
|---|---|
Movie poster |
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| Directed by | Hilary Birmingham |
| Produced by | Hilary Birmingham Anne Sundberg |
| Written by | Hilary Birmingham Matt Drake |
| Starring | Glenn Fitzgerald Anson Mount Bob Burrus Julianne Nicholson |
| Music by | Marcelo Zarvos |
| Cinematography | John Foster |
| Editing by | Affonso Gonçalves |
| Distributed by | Telltale Films (USA) |
| Release date(s) | November 1, 2002 |
| Running time | 102 min |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Tully is a 2000 drama film written and directed by Hilary Birmingham. It was screened at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival on April 14, 2000 and received a limited release in the United States on November 1, 2002. The film is based on a O. Henry Prize-winning short story by author Tom McNeal.
Originally titled The Truth About Tully, the film changed its name to avoid confusion with Jonathan Demme's The Truth About Charlie.[1]
Contents |
The story centers around the Coates brothers, Tully (Anson Mount) and Earl (Glenn Fitzgerald), who live on their father's (Bob Burrus) ranch in rural Nebraska. Their mother abandoned the family at a young age. Tully is very outgoing and has relationships with many women, including a stripper, April (Catherine Kellner). Earl is more of an introvert.
Ella (Julianne Nicholson), a childhood friend comes back to town to start a veterinarian practice. She is friends with both of the Coates brothers. Initially, it appears that Ella has more in common with Earl, as she is reserved and not the typical woman that Tully dates. However, they start a relationship.
The elder Coates clearly misses his wife, and as the film develops, his financial problems worsen. It is eventually shown that his financial problems are due to his wife's medical bills (he never got a divorce). Tully Sr. commits suicide. The film's climax is how the brothers and Ella react to this tragic event.
Tully has an approval rating of 80% on Rotten Tomatoes from 52 reviews counted.[2]
The film develops with a very slow pace, and New York Times critic Stephen Holden praises this in his review:
As deliberately paced as a late-afternoon amble around a homestead, the movie occasionally stops in its tracks to take a deep breath and soak in more of the rural atmosphere. Although this tendency to dawdle may frustrate viewers accustomed to a barrage of visual stimulation, the movie's unhurried rhythm eventually works a quiet spell, and after a while you find yourself settling back, adjusting to the film's bucolic metabolism and appreciating its eye and ear for detail.[3]
Holden also compliments the acting, particularly Nicholson, who he describes as "luminous in an utterly natural way".[3] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times also commends the film's pace, stating that the "deliberate speed goes hand in hand with its unmistakable sense of place, its attraction to the rhythms of farm life and the unhurried sensibility of its small-town Nebraska setting".[1]
Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly gave the film a B+ rating, and writes, "the believable young people growing on this plot of soil are never predictable; neither are the unmannered, affecting performances".[4]
| Awards | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Award | Category | Name | Results |
| Independent Spirit Award[5] | Best Debut Performance | Bob Burrus | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Award | Best Feature | Hilary Birmingham | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Award | Best Feature | Hilary Birmingham, Anne Sundberg | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Award | Best Screenplay | Hilary Birmingham, Matt Drake | Nominated |
| Independent Spirit Award | Best Supporting Female | Julianne Nicholson | Nominated |
| Chlotrudis Awards[6] | Best Supporting Actress | Julianne Nicholson | Nominated |
| Chlotrudis Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Glenn Fitzgerald | Nominated |
| Newport International Film Festival[7] | Audience Award, Best Drama | Hilary Birmingham | Won |
| Gen Art Film Festival[7] | Audience Award, Best Feature Film | Hilary Birmingham | Won |